National Express East Coast

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what plans he has for future operational arrangements for the two rail franchises currently held by National Express; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mole: holding answer 30 November 2009
	I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement by my right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Transport (Mr. Khan) on 26 November 2009,  Official Report, column 100WS.

Departmental Recycling

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what weight of paper his Department recycled in each of the last five years.

Dan Norris: The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs can confirm that DEFRA recycled the following amount of paper in each of the last five years.
	
		
			   Paper recycled (Tonnes)  Total waste (Tonnes)  Percentage of waste recycled( 1)  Percentage of waste recovered( 2) 
			 2008-09 781 (3)- (3)- (3)- 
			 2007-08 881 4,816 29 60 
			 2006-07 860 5,252 27 55 
			 2005-06 970 5,716 29 47 
			 2004-05 669 4,283 22 52 
			 (1) Waste recycled is any waste that is recycled, composted or reused externally. (2) Waste recovered is any waste that is recycled, composted, reused externally or incinerated with energy recovery (energy from waste). (3) Data embargoed by OGC until 18 December 2009. 
		
	
	The table above demonstrates that DEFRA is continuing to both reduce its waste arisings and increase the amount of waste it recycles/recovers.
	It should be noted that DEFRA rebaselined its waste arisings for Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate (SOGE) reporting purposes to 2006-07 following a change in the reporting parameters; in 2004-05 and 2005-06 data was gathered from sites with 50 or more staff, this changed in 2006-07 and subsequent years to reporting sites with 25 or more staff. The number of sites has increased from 38 to over 50.
	It should be noted that DEFRA incinerates approximately 30 per cent. of its waste, from which significant quantity of heat and energy is recovered. The majority of the incinerated waste is generated in the laboratories and cannot be recycled, therefore incinerating with energy recovery higher on the waste hierarchy than sending to landfill. Current Sustainable Development Commission reporting does not acknowledge energy recovery from waste incineration as recycling or waste recovery under current Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate (SOGE) guidelines.
	The full 2008-09 Sustainable Development in Government (SDiG) reporting data will be published by OGC on 18 December 2009.

Departmental Air Travel

Simon Hughes: To ask the Solicitor-General how many domestic flights within Great Britain officials from the Law Officers' Departments took in an official capacity in 2008-09; and at what cost to the public purse such flights were taken.

Vera Baird: The information requested is contained in the following table.
	
		
			  Department  Number of flight on official business  Cost (£) 
			 Attorney General's Office 73 16,932 
			 Serious Fraud Office 77 14,812 
			 National Fraud Authority 2 749.20 
			 Treasury Solicitors 0 0 
			 Her Majesty's Chief Crown Prosecutions inspectorate 0 0 
			 Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office 19 3,052.37 
		
	
	Information in respect of the Crown Prosecution Service could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	All travel by Civil Servants is undertaken in accordance with the guidelines set out in the Civil Service Management Code and Departmental staff handbooks.

Departmental Cost-effectiveness

Vincent Cable: To ask the Solicitor-General what efficiency savings projects the Law Officers' Departments put in place under the Operational Efficiency Programme; on what date each such project was initiated; how much each such project was expected to contribute to Departmental savings; how much had been saved through each such project on the latest date for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement.

Vera Baird: The Law Officers Departments account for one of the smallest budgets in Whitehall. In line with the Government's OEP implementation plan, they have provided benchmarking data to HM Treasury across the range of OEP indicators.
	The Law Officers Departments' contribution to the Operational Efficiency Programme (OEP) is being delivered as part of their wider effort to deliver value for money, including their contribution to the Government's target to deliver £35 billion in savings during the current comprehensive spending review period.
	Under these arrangements a number of projects are planned or are already under way. In April it was announced that we would merge the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office (RCPO) to drive out economies of scale, minimise duplication and create a more flexible and resilient organisation which was better able to handle specialist and complex cases. RCPO and CPS will by July 2010 have merged into one prosecuting body delivering significant savings.
	The Law Officers Departments are also reviewing their estates as part of the overall efficiency effort, with a view to rationalising accommodation as leases expire. The first major phase of the rationalisation will be to give up RCPO's existing accommodation in New Kings Beam House when the lease on that property expires in December 2011. Work thereafter will enable the whole Law Officers Departments estate to be used more flexibly and cost-effectively in the future.
	Additionally, the Treasury Solicitor's Department (TSol) has upgraded its financial system and reviewed its financial processes so that the opportunities for efficiency provided by the new system can be fully exploited and these include outsourced invoice scanning with electronic authorisation. New procure to pay systems are being introduced, in line with the recommendations of the OEP, to improve controls over the procurement process, reduce costs and increase the opportunities for collaborative procurement.
	The Law Officers Departments continue to work collectively to identify and deliver further opportunities for efficiency savings in OEP areas and are undertaking a review to ensure that they are best positioned to contribute to the £9 billion which will be delivered in the next spending period.

Debts: Advisory Services

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what discussions officials of his Department have had with the Prime Minister's Office on the regulation of debt management schemes;
	(2)  what meetings his Department held with outside organisations prior to the publication of the consultation on the introduction of a statutory debt management scheme;
	(3)  for what reason the consultation on the introduction of a statutory debt management scheme was not published in July 2009;
	(4)  what discussions Ministers in his Department had with interested parties prior to the publication of the consultation on the introduction of a statutory debt management scheme;
	(5)  what representations his Department has received to its consultation on debt management schemes to date;
	(6)  what his policy is on the generation of profits from debt management schemes operating under the provisions of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007; and if he will make a statement;
	(7)  when he expects to publish his Department's response to its consultation on debt management schemes.

Bridget Prentice: The current economic downturn is causing real hardship for many hardworking consumers and the Government are determined to do all it can to help those in financial difficulties, while balancing this against creditors' rights to recover their debts wherever possible, both now and in the future.
	Following concerns about the operation of this sector, the consultation paper "Debt Management Schemes-delivering effective and balanced solutions for debtors and creditors" was published on 18 September 2009. It looks at the current operation of the debt management market, seeking views on whether any changes are needed in this area and, if so, what those changes should be.
	The consultation paper sets out three broad options. First, to continue with the measures currently under way to raise awareness about current schemes and enforce existing rules with operators. Second, to improve current schemes without regulation, possibly through the introduction of a protocol. Or third, to implement the Lord Chancellor's powers to approve debt management schemes contained in Chapter 4 of Part 5 of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act (TCEA) 2007.
	During the development of the paper, officials held a number of bi-lateral meetings with stakeholders from the credit, advice and debt management plan operator sectors. These were supplemented by a series of seminars to wider audiences at various locations across the country and the creation a key stakeholder group consisting of representatives from all sectors that has met several times.
	The Government had originally intended to publish the consultation paper before the summer recess. However, publication was delayed to allow the paper to reflect early comments on the Consumer White Paper published on 2 July 2009, which detailed wider Government action to support consumers.
	This consultation has been developed jointly by the Ministry of Justice, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Insolvency Service. As is normal, such consultations involve discussions with and input from a wide range of departments, including the Cabinet Office.
	The consultation paper makes it clear that the Government have no set view on which, if any, of the options proposed should be taken forward. However, it has made it clear that only reasonable costs should be recoverable by providers and is seeking views on the level at which these should be set should there be a consensus to move forward with either the introduction some form of protocol or the implementation of the powers in Part 5 of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007.
	It is expected that the results of the consultation will be available in the new year, at which time the Government would announce what action it plans to take in this area.
	The consultation paper can be accessed via the Ministry of Justice website at:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/debt-management-schemes.htm

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost was of maintaining his Department's website in the 2008-09 financial year; and what the forecast cost is of maintaining websites within his responsibility in the 2009-10 financial year.

Michael Wills: The Ministry of Justice does not separately identify expenditure on website maintenance in its accounting records. However, the Ministry's Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) division holds offline records on this expenditure as follows:
	
		
			  2008-09  m aintenance cost 
			   £ 
			 Ministry of Justice HQ 1,410,000.00 
			 Tribunals Service 146,256.00 
			 Office of the Public Guardian 0 
		
	
	
		
			  2009-10  f orecast maintenance cost 
			   £ 
			 Ministry of Justice HQ 1,410,000.00 
			 Tribunals Service 164,615.00 
			 Office of the Public Guardian 0 
		
	
	It is not possible to reliably distinguish website maintenance costs (incurred or forecast) from other IT expenditure for HM Courts Service and the National Offender Management Service, except at disproportionate cost.

Domestic Violence

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the  (a) longest,  (b) average and  (c) shortest waiting period for entry on to a domestic violence perpetrator programme was in England and Wales in each year since such programmes were introduced.

Maria Eagle: The following table shows the longest, average and shortest number of weeks that elapse from the date of sentence or licence for offences of violence or abuse to the commencement of domestic violence programme requirements in England and Wales from 2005-06 to 2008-09.
	
		
			  Domestic violence programme waiting times in England and Wales 
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Longest 155.1 161.5 166.1 155.9 
			 Average(1) 27.1 30.0 31.8 29.4 
			 Shortest 0.1 0 0.1 0 
			 (1)Average across 40 probation areas, excludes data from Cheshire and Greater Manchester. 
		
	
	High risk offenders will be given priority by probation areas over those of medium risk. Preparation work needs to be completed with offenders before they can commence the group work element of a programme.
	Offenders waiting for a place on a domestic violence programme are under the supervision of their offender manager who will monitor and actively manage the risk posed by the offender during the course of the supervision period.
	The National Offender Management Service are working to reduce waiting times by ensuring staff are familiar with the referral criteria, and by improved liaison between the offender manager, the programme delivery team, and the court.
	A further three domestic abuse programmes are also currently being piloted with a view to extending the range of interventions available to perpetrators.
	The figures have been drawn from administrative data systems and although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. The figures may also be subject to change as cases are updated.

National Offender Management Information System: Expenditure

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what expenditure his Department incurred on the C-NOMIS IT project.

Maria Eagle: The cost of the C-NOMIS project was £160.7 million (which excludes depreciation and cost of capital). The majority of this work has been re-used in the Prison-NOMIS project, which now forms part of the NOMIS Programme.

Prison: Drugs

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the drug testing programme in prisons.

Maria Eagle: There are three types of drug testing programmes in prisons:
	clinical drug testing which may be used by healthcare staff in support of drug misuse diagnosis;
	mandatory drug testing (MDT); and
	compact based drug testing (CBDT).
	Clinical drug testing is the responsibility of Primary Care Trusts and must be undertaken in line with Department of Health Guidance - Drug Misuse and Dependence: UK Guidelines on Clinical Management. Diagnosis does not rely entirely on indicative drug screening results.
	Drug testing methodologies used by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) match the requirements of the drug testing programmes, and are based on analytical industry standards. Drug testing services were subject to a rigorous evaluation at the time of procurement and are subject to independent quality control.
	Independent research carried out by the Office for National Statistics in to the effectiveness of MDT
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs05/rdsolr0305.pdf
	concluded that the mandatory drug testing programme met its key objectives.
	The effectiveness of CBDT is difficult to isolate from the range of other interventions offered to drug-misusing offenders in prisons. However, contingency management, which operates by providing incentives to modify behaviour, is well evidenced as being effective in the treatment of drug misuse and is recommended by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE). CBDT is broadly consistent with the principles of contingency management.
	Both MDT and CBDT continue to be integral parts of the wider NOMS Drug Strategy in prisons. The success of the strategy overall is reflected in the reduction in drug misuse in prisons of 68 per cent. since 1996-07.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what the cost was of maintaining his Department's website in the 2008-09 financial year; and what the forecast cost is of maintaining websites within his responsibility in the 2009-10 financial year.

Ann McKechin: The cost of maintaining the Scotland Office website in the financial year 2008-09 was £15,052.50 plus VAT.
	The cost included the redevelopment of the site including a comprehensive in-house content management system which represents considerable value for money and cost savings for the office when implemented as well as now and in the future.
	The projected maintenance costs for the Scotland Office website for the financial year 2009-10 are £3,500 plus VAT.

Departmental Contracts

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what criteria his Department uses in determining the award of contracts; and how much his Department has spent on the advertisement of tenders for Government contracts since 1997.

Si�n Simon: Each contract has its own unique set of criteria on which the award will be made. This will be dependent on the specific nature of work that is required. All criteria used are in accordance with best practice, in terms of seeking the most economically advantageous tender.
	The Department only holds information on the cost of advertising tenders from 2006-07, when electronic tendering was introduced.
	
		
			
			 2006-07 4,112 
			 2007-08 4,112 
			 2008-09 4,112

Departmental Public Expenditure

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the cost to his Department was of provision of office facilities to  (a) special advisers and  (b) press officers in the 2008-09 financial year.

Si�n Simon: The cost of provision of office facilities to special advisers and press officers in 2008-09 was as follows:
	
		
			
			 Special advisers 20,520 
			 Press officers 71,910 
		
	
	Costs include an appropriate share of rent, business rates, service charges, utilities maintenance and accommodation management charges.

Digital Switchover Help Scheme

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much the Switchover Help Scheme for digital switchover has cost.

Ben Bradshaw: The Digital Switchover Help Scheme is funded through 603 million ringfenced within the TV licence fee income over the period of switchover.
	Switchover Help Scheme expenditure is published in the BBC's Annual Report and Accounts, published on the BBC website. As of 31 March 2009, the cumulative total spent by the Help Scheme was 29.5 million. This figure includes expenditure in 2007-08 and is net of 0.8 million received from those eligible people who are not in receipt of income related benefits and who therefore pay a 40 fee.

UK School Games

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 23 November 2009,  Official Report, columns 37-38W, on the UK School Games, if he will provide a detailed breakdown of the estimated final cost of the 3.3 million spent on the UK School Games in 2009.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Youth Sport Trust has confirmed that the final cost of the 2009 UK School Games was approximately 3.1 million. A breakdown of the expenditure is set out in the table:
	
		
			  2009 
			  Description  Cost () 
			  Event Management, Delivery and Planning 1,873,000 
			 Travel and accommodation 795,000 
			 Medical costs 60,000 
			 Catering 82,000 
			 Venue costs, Sports services-timing, equipment etc. 450,000 
			 Other-External staff, IT, printed materials, insurance, legal fees etc. 136,000 
			 Event management 350,000 
			   
			  Competition Step Change 675,000 
			 Development work-payments and support to national governing bodies 475,000 
			 Competition venues look, clothing and kit 200,000 
			   
			  Raise Profile and Promote PE and School Sport 227,000 
			 Event production, media, website etc. 227,000 
			   
			  Olympic/Paralympic spirit 190,000 
			 Work with British Olympic Foundation, including Athlete Village, ambassadors etc. 80,000 
			 Opening/closing ceremonies 110,000 
			   
			  Development of volunteering 50,000 
			 (Operational costs of volunteering are covered under event management)  
			   
			  Child Protection and Welfare 50,000 
			 Including work with NSPCC's Child Protection in Sport Unit  
			   
			  Other  (Disability Commission, monitoring and evaluation, miscellaneous etc.) 45,000 
			   
			 Total expenditure 3,110,000

Departmental Assets

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assets of his Department are planned to be sold in each year from 2009-10 to 2013-14; what the  (a) description and  (b) book value of each such asset is; what the expected revenue from each such sale is; and if he will make a statement.

Shaun Woodward: The assets of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO), including its arms length bodies and the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland but excluding its agencies and NDPBs, that have either been sold or are planned to be sold in 2009-10 and 2010-11 are shown in the following table.
	
		
			   
			   Description  Net book value at 31 March 2009  Actual/expected revenue 
			  2009-10 House 314,450 (1)300,000 
			  House 230,200 (1)227,000 
			  House 227,000 (1)190,000 
			  House 101,050 (1)97,000 
			  2010-11 House 177,300 (2)- 
			 (1) Sold (2) For Sale 177,300 
		
	
	Determining which assets will be sold in 2011-12 to 2013-14 will form part of the planning process for the next spending review.

Departmental Cost Effectiveness

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what efficiency savings projects  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies put in place under the Operational Efficiency Programme; on what date each such project was initiated; how much each such project was expected to contribute to departmental savings; how much had been saved through each such project on the latest date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: There is no separate OEP target in this SR period beyond the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) savings of 125 million as part of our contribution to the CSR07 target of 35 billion, which is reported on in the Autumn Performance Report.
	In response to the Operational Efficiency Programme, the Department's Business Performance Review Team (BPRT) commenced a scoping study to consider the delivery of the Department's back office functions in September 2009. The study will include IT, Finance, Human Resources, Travel Services, Estates Management, Procurement, Legal Services, Information Services and current assets, including accommodation. The assessment will take into account current and future business, organisational, and customer requirements.
	The study may provide options for a series of future detailed operational reviews that will examine performance and make recommendations for measurable improvements in service delivery to include the simplification, standardisation, and rationalisation of functions to drive efficiency. Identified savings will contribute to the 9 billion which will be delivered in the next spending period.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost was of maintaining his Department's website in the 2008-09 financial year; and what the forecast cost is of maintaining websites within his responsibility in the 2009-10 financial year.

Paul Goggins: The cost to my Department in the 2008-09 year for maintaining the website was 6,456.00. As this is a contracted out service the anticipated costs for 2010-11 will be the same as 2008-09.

Departmental Taxis

Ian Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what contracts his Department has with private hire taxi companies; and what expenditure his Department has incurred against each such contract in each of the last three years.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO), including its arms length bodies and the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland but excluding its agencies and NDPBs, currently uses two contracts with private hire taxi companies. These contracts belong to the Department of Finance and Personnel in Belfast and the Cabinet Office in London. The names of the taxi companies cannot be disclosed for staff security reasons.
	The increase in expenditure on taxis in the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) followed a review in 2007 when the Department adopted a policy which made greater use of taxis rather than private hire cars. While this change in policy has led to an increase in the cost of taxis, it has generated estimated whole year net savings of 150,000
	The following table shows the total expenditure incurred by the NIO against these contracts in each of the last three years:
	
		
			
			 2006-07 34,716.05 
			 2007-08 49,555.89 
			 2008-09 111,766.27 
		
	
	Each member of staff is advised that, before any business related journey is made, the most cost effective means of transport must be considered. Where the use of public transport or private car is not possible or economic, then the journey may be made by taxi.
	The NIO keeps the cost of travel on official business under regular review.

Alcoholic Drinks: Fraud

Angela Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made on the HM Revenue and Customs strategy on alcohol fraud since April 2009.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: HM Treasury continually monitors alcohol fraud and other related issues, and any changes would be announced at the time of the Pre-Budget Report.

Child Benefit

David Chaytor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what proportion of applications for child benefit were completed within  (a) four,  (b) eight and  (c) 12 weeks in each of the last three years;
	(2)  what guidelines he has issued in respect of the maximum number of weeks required to process applications for child benefit from  (a) all applicants and  (b) parents of adopted children.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is not available.
	For information on the time taken to pay new child benefit claims in 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09, I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave to:
	the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, South and East Cleveland (Dr. Kumar) on 2 February 2009,  Official Report, column 894W;
	the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) on 22 October 2008,  Official Report, column 356W; and
	the hon. Member for Glasgow, East (John Mason) on 27 April 2009,  Official Report, columns 1046-47W.
	HM Revenue and Customs aims to pay 66 per cent. of new child benefit claims in nine working days in 2009-10 and all claims in an average of 20 calendar days.

Floods: Cumbria

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the uninsured losses incurred as a consequence of the recent floods in Cumbria;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of people affected by the recent flood in Cumbria who were unable to obtain insurance for  (a) their buildings,  (b) the contents of their buildings and  (c) neither their buildings nor the contents of those buildings because of the risk of flooding to their properties; and if he will make a statement.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: No such estimate has been made. However, the Government are sympathetic to those affected by the Cumbrian floods and have allocated an additional 1 million Community Recovery Fund towards the region.

Taxation: Holiday Accommodation

Michael Howard: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has made to the European Commission on the legal status of the furnished holiday letting rules.

Stephen Timms: I refer the right hon. and learned Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Montgomeryshire (Lembit pik) on 20 October 2009,  Official Report, column 1413W.

Taxation: Pensions

Hywel Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what percentage of the 9 billion disregard for employer national insurance contributions to registered pension schemes in Table A3.1 of the 2009 Budget Red Book is attributable to higher rate taxpayers;
	(2)  what percentage of the 20.3 billion approved pension scheme tax relief for 2008-09 in Table A3.1 of the 2009 Budget in attributable to higher rate tax relief.

Stephen Timms: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 7 May 2009,  Official Report, column 421W.
	It is not possible to provide such a breakdown for other components of the overall cost of registered pension scheme tax relief, nor is it possible to provide it for the disregard for employer national insurance contributions to registered pension schemes.

VAT

Stephen Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make an assessment of the merits of amending the rate at which Value Added Tax is charged on equipment for  (a) domestic renewable energy production and  (b) increasing levels of energy efficiency as a mechanism for encouraging the use of such equipment.

Stephen Timms: VAT is a broad-based tax on consumer expenditure and reliefs from it have always been strictly limited; the Government continue to keep all
	taxes under review.
	A value added tax rate of 5 per cent. applies to the domestic installation of certain renewable energy production technologies such as solar panels, wind turbines, air and ground source heat pumps and wood fuelled boilers. However, when such technologies are bought for 'do-it-yourself installation purposes, the standard VAT rate (currently of 15 per cent.) instead applies.
	European VAT agreements do not currently allow a reduced VAT rate for the 'do-it-yourself' installation of renewable energy production technologies or indeed for any products or materials designed to help increase levels of energy efficiency.
	The Government continue to make the case for changes to these European agreements to allow for a wider application of reduced VAT rates to energy-efficient products and energy-saving materials.

VAT: Postal Services

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the written ministerial statement of 9 November 2009,  Official Report, column 1WS, on EGFIN, what political guidelines will be used to determine whether the UK will be required to impose value added tax on postal services.

Stephen Timms: The VAT treatment of postal services was not discussed at the ECOFIN meeting held on 10 November, although it is on the agenda of the ECOFIN meeting to be held on 2 December.
	The UK believes that supplies made by the public postal services should continue to be exempt from VAT.

Working Tax Credit

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many unemployed people were claiming the childcare element of the working tax credit in each of the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is not available. Working Tax Credit, including the child care element, is generally conditional upon a lone parent, or each member of a couple, working at least 16 hours a week. However, payment may continue for a period of four weeks where the hours a person works fall below 16 hours a week, or if they stop work.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the cost was of maintaining his Department's website in the 2008-09 financial year; and what the forecast cost is of maintaining websites within his responsibility in the 2009-10 financial year.

Michael Foster: For the cost of maintaining the Department for International Development's (DFID's) website in 2008-09 I refer the right hon. Gentlemen to the answer of 14 January 2009,  Official Report, column 832W.
	The DFID website is maintained in house from existing resources. The Department is also responsible for the Developments magazine website and the Research4Development websites. Projected costs for these two websites are 566,512.

United Nations: Females

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the Answer of 23 November 2009,  Official Report, column 27W, on the United Nations: females, if his Department will prepare a list of UK women nationals to be considered for nomination to senior positions on  (a) the Committee on the Elimination of Violence Against Women and  (b) the United Nations Agency for Women.

Michael Foster: The UK Government are committed to promoting a good quality field of candidates for the heads and senior leadership of all institutional institutions. In all cases we will promote open, transparent and merit-based processes. In some cases we may wish to promote a UK candidate where they are best qualified for the post. We have no plans to promote a UK candidate for either of these two appointments.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many coalition helicopters which can be called on by UK forces are available in Helmand province; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: It is not possible to provide details of the numbers of helicopters available to UK forces in Helmand Province for operational security reasons; the release of this information would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness, or security of our armed forces.
	I can confirm that, in addition to our own helicopters, we draw on helicopter assets provided by our allies, including the Dutch, Canadians, Australians and Americans. Helicopter support to international security assistance force operations in southern Afghanistan is provided from a multi-national pool of helicopters allocated by regional command (south).

Armed Forces: Cadets

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much funding his Department has provided to the  (a) Air and  (b) Sea Cadets in each year since 1997; and how much such funding has been allocated for each of the next two years.

Kevan Jones: In broad terms, the MOD spends approximately one in every 250 defence pounds on Cadets. The Air Cadet Organisation (ACO) has received the following funding from the Department:
	
		
			  Period  Amount received ( million) 
			 1997-08 18 
			 1998-09 19 
			 1999-2000 18 
			 2000-01 19 
			 2001-02 20 
			 2002-03 22 
			 2003-04 25 
			 2004-05 27 
			 2005-06 28 
			 2006-07 31 
			 2007-08 26 
			 2008-09 23 
			 2009-10 23 
		
	
	The figure for 2006-07 includes a funding allocation of 1.6 million for infrastructure modernisation and an Adult Volunteer Recruitment Campaign.
	With effect from FY 2008-09 the funding of works services (comprising maintenance, refurbishment and replacement of the ACO estate of over 1,000 buildings) was transferred to Defence Estates and no longer falls within the ACO budget. Service manpower pay (estimated at approximately 3 million currently) was, from FY 2007-08, transferred to the Single Point Accounting system covering all RAF personnel and thus no longer forms part of the ACO budget. These funding allocations have been changed to reflect a more efficient way of paying for essential elements. The overall level of funding provided for cadet activities has not fallen and reflects our continued commitment to the Air Cadet Organisation.
	The Marine Society and Sea Cadets are a registered charity and are supported by the MOD through a Grant in Aid. Figures prior to 2006 are not held in the format requested and could only be provided through a manual search of earlier records at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Period  Amount received ( million) 
			 2006-07 8.3 
			 2007-08 8.4 
			 2008-09 8.7 
			 2009-10 9.0 
		
	
	In respect of future allocations, the available resources for Defence expenditure are set during spending rounds. The most recent comprehensive spending review set the Department's budget for the financial years 2008-11.
	Departmental expenditure plans for 2010-11 and beyond have not yet been agreed.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Mastiff 2 armoured vehicles are  (a) deployed in Afghanistan,  (b) owned by his Department and  (c) on order.

Kevan Jones: I am withholding details on the number of Mastiff 2 protected vehicles deployed in Afghanistan as disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces. As at 23 November 2009, the Department owned 163 Mastiff 2s, with a further 35 on order.

Chelsea Barracks

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence to what specific purposes revenue raised from the sale of Chelsea barracks in 2007-08 has been allocated.

Kevan Jones: I refer the hon. Member to the answer my predecessor gave on 15 September 2008,  Official Report, column 2074W. There is no specific link between disposal receipts and individual elements of defence expenditure. Exceptionally, however, the disposal of Chelsea barracks for a total of 959 million, was included in the plans of the Department and underpinned investment in service accommodation of 250 million in 2007-08.
	It was agreed as part of the 2007 comprehensive spending review that a further 550 million should be invested over the following three years with plans for the balance of the proceeds of 159 million, to be agreed with HM Treasury as part of the next spending review.
	The disposal of Chelsea barracks has, therefore, secured the major investment in service accommodation through Project SLAM (single living accommodation modernisation), the service housing upgrade programme and many other significant accommodation projects in the UK and overseas to improve the living conditions for our service personnel.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) page hits and  (b) visitors his Department's website received in 2008-09.

Kevan Jones: The Ministry of Defence and armed forces collectively maintain four corporate websites. The number of page views and visitors during 2008-09 is detailed as follows. This analysis complies with the guidance issued by the Central Office of Information (COI) on the methodology for identifying website usage in response to the Public Account Committee (PAC) Sixteenth Report. This guidance can be found at the following link;
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200708/cmselect/cmpubacc/143/14302.htm
	
		
			  Website  URL  Page impressions  Unique visitors/browsers 
			 MOD corporate website(1) www.mod.uk 27,201,182 3,732,511 
			 Royal Navy www.royalnavy.mod.uk 52,415,075 5,693,784 
			 British Army www.army.mod.uk 68,670516 8,702,424 
			 Royal Air Force www.raf.mod.uk 87,536,440 16,109,392 
			 (1) Page impression figure includes robot/spider activity. 
		
	
	A number of other websites are run by different parts of the Ministry of Defence, but these are not managed centrally, and the information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons the capital receipts in respect of Northern Ireland referred to in his Winter Supplementary Estimate for 2009-10 were lower than in his Department's estimates for 2008-09.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 30 November 2009
	The difference between the main estimates and those at winter supplementary estimates is because the Government have decided to gift, subject to parliamentary approval, a number of sites in Northern Ireland, which are no longer required for defence purposes, to the Northern Ireland Executive. The MOD has agreed 15 million capital relief from HM Treasury in respect of the consequent reduction in receipts.

Hercules Aircraft: Training

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the contract for the construction of the building to house the C (130) J simulator at RAF Brize Norton to be signed.

Kevan Jones: It is anticipated that the contract for the C130J Training and Mission Rehearsal Facility at RAF Brize Norton, which will eventually house the C130J Flight Simulators and other training facilities currently at RAF Lyneham, will be awarded early next year.

Merlin Helicopters: Training

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel have taken part in Exercise Merlin Vortex.

Bill Rammell: Exercise Merlin Vortex was a pre-deployment training exercise to prepare the Merlin force for deployment to Afghanistan. 422 service personnel took part in the exercise, comprising 177 aircrew and 245 ground support staff. In addition, the exercise was supported by two civilian doctors.
	The deployment of the Merlin force to Afghanistan began in November and will be complete by the end of 2009.

Puma Helicopters

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the first upgraded HC.2 Puma helicopters will enter service; and by what date the entire fleet will be upgraded.

Kevan Jones: The first Puma Mk2 aircraft will enter squadron service in 2012. The upgrade of the entire fleet is planned to complete in 2014.

Puma Helicopters

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost to his Department is of the upgrade programme to Puma helicopters; and what the cost per upgraded helicopter is.

Kevan Jones: The Puma HC Mk2 Demonstration and Manufacture phase is expected to cost some 300 million. This includes the one-off costs associated with developing the required modifications and undertaking the trials activity necessary to certify the aircraft; the provision of initial support and conversion training for aircrew and maintainers; and the cost of modifying each helicopter. Each aircraft will cost in the order of 10 million to upgrade taking into account the above one-off costs.

Trinidad and Tobago: Commonwealth Heads of Government Conference

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  how many civil servants he expects to accompany him to the 2009 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Trinidad and Tobago;
	(2)  which Ministers he expects to accompany him to the 2009 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Trinidad and Tobago.

Gordon Brown: Information on all visits overseas undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of 500 is published on an annual basis. Information for 2009-10 will be published in the normal way.

Uganda: Commonwealth Heads of Government Conference

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  which Ministers accompanied him to the 2007 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Uganda;
	(2)  how many civil servants accompanied him to the 2007 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Uganda.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Member to the annual list of overseas visits by Cabinet Ministers, costing in excess of 500, for 2007-08, published by the Government. Copies of the lists are available in the Libraries of the House.

Disability Living Allowance

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether she has plans to direct parents in receipt of out-of-work benefits with children who  (a) are in receipt of an award of disability living allowance mobility component and  (b) have an award of disability living allowance under appeal to undertake work-related activity.

Helen Goodman: holding answer 30 November 2009
	 We announced during passage of the Welfare Reform Act 2009 that parents with a child in receipt of any rate of care component of disability living allowance will be exempt from the requirement to undertake work-related activity while claiming income support.
	Those with children in receipt of the mobility component of disability living allowance, but no care component, will be required to undertake work related activity.
	Some parents will be exempt from work related activity, including those with a child in receipt of any level care component of disability living allowance. If an award of disability living allowance is removed we will require the parent to undertake work related activity.

Disability Living Allowance: Lone Parents

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  for what reasons she has decided to exempt lone parents from benefit conditionality when their child is receiving the care component of disability living allowance; when she intends to bring forward regulations setting out the exemptions; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  for what reasons she has decided not to exempt from benefit conditionality lone parents of children receiving the mobility component of disability living allowance; when she intends to bring forward regulations setting out the exemptions; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Goodman: Under existing regulations, lone parents who would otherwise be required to claim jobseeker's allowance, but who have a child in receipt of the highest or middle rate care component of disability living allowance, are not required to be available for work in return for benefit. The entitlement conditions to the care component of disability living allowance lay out clear expectations of, at a minimum, a requirement for attention for a significant portion of the day, some or all of which could be expected to be carried out by a parent.
	We announced during passage of the Welfare Reform Act 2009 that lone parents with a child in receipt of any rate of care component of disability living allowance would be exempted from the requirement to undertake work-related activity while claiming income support. Work-related activity will be piloted initially in four areas, and we will bring forward the relevant regulations in the new year.
	With respect to the mobility component of disability living allowance, the effect on a parent's availability to undertake work-related activity is less. The higher rate does not attach itself to a requirement for help from another person, and although the lower rate component requires guidance or supervision from another person when out of doors, unlike with care component there is no minimum threshold for the time or effort required to guide or supervise a child. We are therefore not providing for a blanket exemption from work-related activity or, in due course, availability for work. However, a decision-maker must, under the Welfare Reform Act 2009, take into account health and disability issues when considering whether there is good cause for failure to comply with a direction to undertake work-related activity or, in due course, for turning down a job; and the issue should have been taken into account before this, in agreeing an action plan or, in due course, a jobseeker's agreement that takes into account the wellbeing of the child.

Employment and Support Allowance: Dartford

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Dartford who have submitted claims for employment and support allowance since its introduction have appealed against the outcome of the work capability assessment  (a) successfully and  (b) unsuccessfully.

Jonathan R Shaw: Data on appeals against the work capability assessment decision is held at regional level and figures for the south-east region are provided. For people in the south-east who started an employment and support allowance claim since its introduction in October 2008 up to February 2009, who were found fit for work at the work capability assessment and have submitted and completed an appeal the figures are:
	Successful appeals: 100
	Unsuccessful appeals: 120
	These figures are rounded to the nearest 10 and are consistent with the national figures published in October 2009.
	Due to the time it takes for appeals to be submitted to Tribunals Service and heard, a very limited volume of appeals heard data is held currently. Volumes will increase in the coming months as more appeals are processed giving a more robust picture of appeal volumes and outcomes.

Social Security Benefits: Elderly

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent on the  (a) care and  (b) mobility component of (i) attendance and (ii) disability living allowance for people over 65 in England in (A) 2007-08 and (B) 2008-09.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 23 November 2009
	 The information requested is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Expenditure on the care/mobility component of attendance allowance and disability living allowance for claimants aged 65 and over in England 
			   million 
			   In cash terms  In 2009-10 prices 
			   2007-08  2008-09  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Disability living allowance: care component 885 983 916 993 
			 Disability living allowance: mobility component 1,179 1,270 1,220 1,283 
			 Attendance allowance: care component 3,675 3,924 3,804 3,963 
			  Notes: 1. Claimants on disability living allowance may receive both a care and mobility component. 2. Attendance allowance does not have a mobility component.  Source: DWP Statistical and Accounting Data

India: Religious Freedom

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government has taken with the government of India to assist in the protection of Christians in Orissa.

Ivan Lewis: The Government have not provided assistance to the Government of India for the protection of Christians in Orissa. The Department for International Development is providing 10 million for community development in Orissa through the Tribal Empowerment and Livelihoods Programme from 2004-10. The programme has helped to increase incomes, reduce malnutrition and improve water and sanitation for over 375,000 tribal men and women in four districts of Orissa, including Kandhamal.
	Our high commission in New Delhi is also supporting a pilot project to improve access to justice in Kandhamal by improving awareness of citizens' rights and the capacity of lawyers to effectively pursue cases for victims of the communal violence in 2008.

Iran: Bahai Faith

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the Government of Iran on the treatment of members of the Baha'i faith in that country.

Ivan Lewis: Alongside our EU partners we have expressed concerns about the treatment of the Baha'i community in Iran to the Iranian Government on several occasions. The EU Presidency summoned the Iranian Ambassador on 10 July 2009, and expressed deep concern about the overall situation of the Baha'is in Iran, especially the charges 'espionage' and corruption on earth against the seven Baha'i leaders imprisoned for over a year without trial.
	Most recently, on 20 November 2009, the UN General Assembly adopted a Resolution on human rights in Iran for the seventh consecutive year. The Resolution condemns 'attacks on Baha'is and their faith in State-sponsored media, increasing evidence of efforts by the State to identify, monitor and arbitrarily detain Baha'is, preventing members of the Baha'i faith from attending university and from sustaining themselves economically'.
	We will continue to urge Iran to respect the right to freedom of religion and belief as described in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Iran is a State Party.

Iran: Press Freedom

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the government of Iran on press freedom in that country.

Ivan Lewis: The UK has serious concerns about wide ranging restrictions on press and media in Iran. Since the elections in June repressive measures have been reinforced and pressure on journalists has increased. Restrictions on both domestic and foreign media remain at an even higher level than before the elections.
	Alongside EU partners we have made it clear to the Iranian authorities that these restrictions are unacceptable. In June, EU Ministers condemned interference with the media, including the unjustified detention of journalists and the expulsion of foreign correspondents. In a meeting with the Deputy Foreign Minister in Tehran on 26 August, the EU made clear that the ongoing media restrictions were unacceptable. In a declaration of 23 October, the EU, with strong UK support, deplored the ongoing violations of freedom of expression and freedom of the press in connection with the events following the elections.
	We have also supported action at the UN. On 20 November, the General Assembly adopted a resolution on the human rights situation in Iran for the seventh consecutive year. This resolution, co-sponsored by the EU
	expresses deep concern at ongoing, systemic and serious restrictions of...freedom of opinion and expression, including those imposed on the media, Internet users and trade unions.

Iraq and Afghanistan: Reconstruction

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much has been spent on each project funded under the Strategic Programme Fund in  (a) Iraq and  (b) Afghanistan in each of the last five years.

Chris Bryant: The total spent to date on projects funded under the Strategic Programme Fund (SPF) is as follows:
	Afghanistan: 78,497,550
	Iraq: 106,610
	
		
			   
			   Afghanistan  Iraq 
			   Afghan Counter Narcotics  Counter Terrorism and Radicalisation  Engaging with the Islamic World  Total  Counter Terrorism and Radicalisation 
			 2004-05 3,000,000 680,846 - 3,680,846 - 
			 2005-06 6,000,000 968,331 - 6,968,331 - 
			 2006-07 16,300,000 881,871 430,680 17,612,551 - 
			 2007-08 16,300,000 - 635,822 16,935,822 55,016 
			 2008-09 30,900,000 2,400,000 - 33,300,000 51,594 
		
	
	The Afghan Counter Narcotics programme has by far the lion's share of SPF expenditure in Afghanistan. Projects are directed towards the Afghan National Drugs Control Strategy which has eight pillars of activity: raising public awareness; promoting international and regional co-operation; promoting alternative livelihoods; reducing demand for drugs; law enforcement; establishing an effective criminal justice system; targeted eradication of opium; building effective Afghan government institutions.
	Projects under the Counter Terrorism and Engaging with the Islamic World programmes have focused on developing police and security capabilities, including the design and build of good governance structures in Afghanistan and Iraq. The work is closely aligned with our counter-terrorism objectives as set out in the Government's counter-terrorism strategy, Contest.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the number of Hezbollah  (a) troops,  (b) rockets and  (c) training camps in southern Lebanon.

Ivan Lewis: The latest UN report on United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1701 highlighted that Hizballah continues to maintain a substantial military capacity distinct from that of the Lebanese State, in direct contravention of UNSCRs 1559 and 1701. It also makes clear that Hizballah have not challenged allegations regarding its armament and increased military capability. All these reports are available on the UN website at:
	http://www.un.org/Docs/sc/sgrep09.htm
	This, combined with statements made by Hizballah officials, suggest that Hizballah has increased its military capacity. However, we lack definitive figures.

Parliamentary Assemblies: Finance

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the running costs of the  (a) North Atlantic Assembly,  (b) Assembly of Western European Union and  (c) Parliamentary Assembly of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe were in the most recent year for which figures are available; and what the Government's contribution was to the costs of each such assembly in that year.

Ivan Lewis: holding answer 30 November 2009
	The 2009 budget for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation Parliamentary Assembly, formerly known as the North Atlantic Assembly, was 3,722,650. The UK contribution was 518,584.
	In 2009, the Western European Union Parliamentary Assembly cost its 10 member states 6,359,336. Of this total, the UK contribution was 1,367,161.
	The overall budget for 2009-10 for the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly is 2,856,128. The UK contribution is 267,035.

South Africa: Chess

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the answer of 8 July 2009,  Official Report, column 862W, on taking chess to the townships project, what recent representations he has received from Mr. Ted Nottingham on the taking chess to the townships initiative; and if he will meet representatives of the organisers of the project to discuss the project's future.

Ivan Lewis: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has received a number of representations from Mr. Nottingham, including via his MP, about his Taking Chess to the Townships initiative. Most recently, my noble Friend the Minister for Africa and the UN, Baroness Kinnock wrote on 19 November 2009 to reiterate that while the Foreign and Commonwealth Office wished Mr. Nottingham well with his initiative, it could not provide any support for it.

Sudan: Armed Conflict

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of rearmament of rebel groups in the Darfur region; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: The Panel of Experts on Sudan established under UN Security Council Resolution 1591 has detailed multiple cases of the transfer of military equipment into Darfur in violation of the UN embargo. We are also aware of recent press reports of rearmament by rebel groups.
	The UK has consistently reiterated to all parties the need to respect the UN arms embargo on Darfur and the EU embargo covering all of Sudan, including in contacts with representatives of the armed movements, Government of Sudan and neighbouring countries.

Sudan: Armed Conflict

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with representatives of  (a) the Sudanese government and  (b) the United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur on the Sudanese government's policies towards UN peacekeeping patrols in the Darfur region in 2009.

Ivan Lewis: We regularly press the Government of Sudan, the UN African Union hybrid mission to Darfur (UNAMID) and other parties in Darfur to act to improve security there, including by respecting the Status of Forces Agreement with the UN. My hon. Friend the Minister of State for International Development (Mr. Thomas) raised our concerns over security during his visit to Sudan on 14-15 October 2009. We underlined the issues again in the UN Security Council discussions of Darfur on 30 November 2009, and in talks that day in Geneva with the UN, the Government of Sudan and other partners on the humanitarian situation in Darfur.

Uganda: Homosexuality

Chris McCafferty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government has made to the Ugandan government on its proposed legislation to  (a) increase penalties for homosexuality and  (b) introduce the death sentence for HIV positive homosexuals.

Ivan Lewis: holding answer 25 November 2009
	The legislation is a Private Member's Bill, which was introduced on 14 October 2009 and is currently at committee stage in Uganda's Parliament. It has not so far been adopted formally by the Ugandan Government.
	We have grave concerns about the Bill, which we have made clear in representations to Ugandan Ministers including by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to President Museveni and my noble Friend, the Minister for Africa and the UN, Baroness Kinnock to Foreign Minister Kutesa at the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. Our concerns include the negative impact the Bill would have on the rights of homosexual and heterosexual Ugandans through the criminalisation of any action that could be construed as support for homosexuality, the introduction of the death penalty for some acts criminalised by the Bill, and the potential impact of the Bill on the fight against HIV/AIDS in Uganda.
	The UK is also in close touch with and is supporting Ugandan civil society organisations campaigning against the Bill.

Departmental Official Hospitality

Oliver Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what expenditure his Department incurred on entertainment at 1 Victoria Street, London SW1 in 2008-09.

Patrick McFadden: The Department spent 1,078,530 on entertainment in 2008-09. Information on how much of that sum was spent at 1 Victoria Street could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Pay

John McDonnell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the  (a) average and  (b) highest non-consolidated performance related payment was in cash terms for a senior civil servant in his Department in each of the last five years.

Patrick McFadden: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) was formed in June 2009 by the merger of the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and the Department for Innovation Universities and Skills (DIUS). No performance related payments have yet been awarded to the Senior Civil Service in BIS.
	BERR and DIUS were themselves created in June 2007 in a Machinery of Government change.
	Non-consolidated non-pensionable performance awards are paid to staff in the senior civil service (SCS) to reward delivery of business objectives and personal contributions to wider organisational goals. Performance awards are part of the pay system across the whole senior civil service, and are used to reward high performance sustained throughout the year, based on judgments of how well an individual has performed relative to their peers. The performance related pay scheme is designed to help drive high performance and support better public service delivery.
	The size of the non-consolidated performance pay pot to be divided between members of the SCS each year is based on recommendations by the independent Senior Salaries Review Body.
	The information available for BERR and DIUS senior civil servants who were in the SCS pay system is shown in the following table.(1)
	(1) These figures exclude senior civil servants who are employed on fixed term contracts with individual remuneration arrangements.
	
		
			 
			   Department  Average SCS award  Largest SCS award 
			 2008-09 BERR 8,580 14,000 
			 2008-09 DIUS 8,473 20,000 
			 2007-08 BERR 7,874 17,000 
			 2007-08 DIUS 9,141 20,000 
		
	
	In accordance with Cabinet Office guidance 25 per cent. of the SCS in both BERR and DIUS received no bonus.

Departmental Temporary Employment

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the estimated cost to the public sector is of the implementation of the EU Agency Workers Directive.

Patrick McFadden: The impact assessment accompanying the consultation on draft regulations published by the Department on 15 October
	www.bis.gov.uk/consulations
	set out the estimated costs and benefits of the directive. Under a 12-week qualifying period for equal treatment, as agreed under the TUC/CBI agreement of 20 May 2008, the cost to public sector hirers was estimated to be between 227 and 337 million a year.

Strategic Investment Fund

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding from the Strategic Investment Fund has been  (a) disbursed and  (b) allocated to projects in each (i) constituency, (ii) local authority area and (iii) Government Office region since the inception of that Fund.

Patrick McFadden: Over 720 million has already been allocated from the Strategic Investment Fund for specific projects and investments. We expect that in the region of 200 million will have been spent by the end of this current financial year.
	The SIF is a UK-wide fund, and many of the projects supported by the SIF are themselves UK-wide in geographical scope. This includes for example achieving universal access to broadband, as part of the Digital Britain programme, and the UK Innovation Investment Fund. It is not possible at present to provide information on the geographical distribution of spend under these projects.
	A number of other projects supported under the SIF can be identified to specific geographical locations, though the benefits of the projects will often be felt over a much wider area. Projects of this kind include the following, which will receive either full or part funding from the SIF:
	
		
			  Project  Geographical location  Total BIS support ( million) 
			 Industrial Biotech Demonstrator Wilton, Teeside 12.0 
			 Airbus A350XWB Launch Investment Broughton, Clwyd and Filton, SW England 340.0 
			 Printable Electronics Centre Sedgefield, Durham 12.0 
			 Rolls Royce low carbon aeroengine technology Derby, East Midlands 45.0 
			 Centre of Excellence for Silicon Design Bristol, SW England 0.5 
			 National Composites Centre Bristol, SW England 12.0 
			 Stevenage Bioscience Park Stevenage, Herts 12.0 
			 Wave Hub-test-bed for wave energy devices Hayle, Cornwall 9.5 
			 South West Marine Energy Development SW England 10.0 
			 Wave and Tidal Energy Test Centre Blyth, Northumberland 10.0 
		
	
	Further details on these projects and other investments being funded from the SIF are contained in the Interim Report the Department published in October, copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.

Affordable Housing

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 24 November 2009,  Official Report, columns 70-1W, on the Homes and Communities Agency, how much the Homes and Communities Agency has received in proceeds from resales under the  (a) First Time Buyer's Initiative,  (b) HomeBuy Direct,  (c) New Build HomeBuy and  (d) Open Market HomeBuy Scheme in each of the last three years; and what the average amount received by the Agency was in respect of such a transaction.

John Healey: For  (a), the following table shows repayments received by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) in 2008-09:
	
		
			  FTBI repayments received by the HCA 2008-09 
			
			 2008-09 107,592 
		
	
	For  (b), HomeBuy Direct became operational in February 2009. There were no resales in the last three years.
	For  (c) and  (d), grant invested in Open Market HomeBuy and New Build HomeBuy properties, through Registered Social Landlords (who own the properties) is credited to the Recycled Capital Grant Fund (RCGF) for provision of new social lets or other low cost homes when the properties are sold whole or through shared ownership terms.
	The total proceeds received by the HCA from sales of grant funded properties in the last three years are as follows:
	
		
			   Recovered gran t () 
			 2006-07 12,215,887 
			 2007-08 9,514,917 
			 2008-09 18,583,258 
			  Source:  HCA.

Audit Commission: Public Relations

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what payments the Audit Commission has made to Connect Public Affairs in the last 12 months; for what purposes; and if he will place in the Library a copy of each of the contracts under which such payments have been made.

Rosie Winterton: This is an operational matter for the Audit Commission, and I will ask the chief executive of the Audit Commission to write to the hon. Member direct.
	 Letter from Steve Bundred, dated 1 December 2009:
	Your Parliamentary Question outlined above has been passed to me to reply.
	The Audit Commission has contracted work from Connect Public Affairs over the last 12 months totalling 55,616.76 (details attached).
	The total cost includes work carried out under contract and ad hoc commissioned work. There is not one overall contract, but an example of the individual contract used is attached and has been placed in the Library.
	A copy of this letter will be placed in  Hansard.
	
		
			   Purpose  Amount () 
			 2 January 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee in December 2008 1,601.25 
			 12 January 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee in November 2008 1,601.25 
			 11 February 2009 Parliamentary monitoring 1,601.25 
			 11 February 2009 CPA Conservative Shadow Cabinet 9,607.50 
			 17 February 2009 Events planner for January 2009 1,067.50 
			 11 March 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee during February 2009 1,601.25 
			 20 March 2009 Management of events planner 533.75 
			 27 March 2009 One off project fee to identify key prospective parliamentary candidates 2,668.75 
			 27 March 2009 One off project fee to develop a public affairs strategy 6,405.00 
			 27 March 2009 Project fee to assist with party conference planning 907.38 
			 24 April 2009 Office expenses including phone for mgt of events planner 533.75 
			 24 April 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee 1,601.25 
			 3 June 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee 2,135.00 
			 10 June 2009 One off project fee 2,668.75 
			 12 June 2009 Connect fee as agreed 1,067.50 
			 13 July 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee June 2009 2,135.00 
			 13 July 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee May 2009 2,135.00 
			 27 July 2009 Connect fee, analysis and overview of local election results 2,135.00 
			 10 August 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee 2,135.00 
			 14 September 2009 Connect fee 2,135.00 
			 14 September 2009 Connect fee 1,601.25 
			 14 September 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee 2,135.00 
			 9 November 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee October 2009 2,668.75 
			 9 November 2009 Parliamentary monitoring fee 2,935.63 
			 Total  55,616.76

Capita

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether any contracts between Capita Group plc and his Department and its predecessors have been cancelled before completion since 1997; and whether Capita Group plc has been liable for any penalties arising from failings in the administration of contracts with his Department and its predecessor since 1997.

Barbara Follett: The Department, and its predecessors, have no record of contracts with Capita plc being cancelled before completion. Capita Group plc has not been liable to any penalties from failings in the administration of contracts since 1997.

Derelict Land

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many acres of brownfield there are in cities on which building development may not take place.

Ian Austin: Information is not held centrally on the area of brownfield land in cities on which building development may not take place. Information on the total amount of previously developed land that may be available for development by local authority is available from the National Land Use Database of Previously-Developed Land which is published by the Homes and Communities Agency.

Homes and Communities Agency

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 24 November 2009,  Official Report, column 73W, on the Homes and Communities Agency: manpower, from which organisation each member of staff was seconded.

John Healey: Of the 50 secondees to Homes and Communities Agency, the majority are from Communities and Local Government; with two from Savills and one each from BERR, DCMS, English Heritage, Lambeth Council, The Prince's Trust, King Sturge, BBP Regeneration, London and Quadrant and Knight Frank.

Housing: Empty Property

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many empty  (a) private and  (b) public homes there were in each region of the UK in each of the last two years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Austin: The term public homes has been interpreted as those owned by local authorities and registered social landlords (RSLs). Information is available only for regions in England.
	A table showing estimates of the number of empty dwellings in the private and public sector in each region in England in the last two years has been placed in the House Library.
	Total vacant dwellings reported by local authorities through council taxbase returns include long term (six months and more) and short term vacancies. Figures for RSLs are for self-contained general needs units only.

Housing: Energy

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he plans to encourage the retrofitting of the existing housing stock with energy efficiency technologies through the building regulations.

Ian Austin: Energy efficiency standards are set out in Part L of the Building Regulations, 'Conservation of fuel and power'. Part L requirements apply only when building work is carried out to existing dwellings. The standards typically cover the construction of extensions, the conversion of non-domestic buildings to dwellings, the installation of new and replacement heating, ventilation and lighting systems, window replacement, and other alterations. We have recently consulted on proposals to raise Part L standards in 2010 and plan to publish a summary of responses at the end of the year.

Housing: Low Incomes

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what applications he has received for funding under his Department's Kickstart programme for projects in Hendon; what funding has been made available; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: Details of all round one approved kickstart schemes, are posted on the Homes and Communities Agency's website at:
	http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/kickstart housing
	This includes a project in Stonegrove.

Local Government Finance: Kent

Stephen Ladyman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding from  (a) revenue support,  (b) capital grant and  (c) supported borrowing was provided by central Government to (i) Kent County Council, (ii) Thanet District Council and (iii) Dover District Council in (A) 2007-08 and (B) 2008-09.

Barbara Follett: Please find as follows a table providing the amount of formula grant, which is made up of revenue support grant and redistributed business rates for non-police authorities, for each of the authorities requested. Formula grant is an unhypothecated block grant. This means that authorities are free to spend the money on any service provided that they meet their statutory duties.
	
		
			 million  
			  Local authority  Year  Prior years adjusted formula grant  Current year ' s formula grant  Change  Percentage change 
			 Kent county council 2007-08 222.673 228.685 6.012 2.7 
			  2008-09 250.743 259.366 8.624 3.4 
			   
			 Thanet district council 2007-08 12.401 12.765 0.364 2.9 
			  2008-09 12.834 13.021 0.187 1.5 
			   
			 Dover district council 2007-08 9.695 9.957 0.262 2.7 
			  2008-09 10.013 10.113 0.100 1.0 
		
	
	Information on the provision of capital grants is not held centrally.
	Supported borrowing or supported capital expenditure (revenue) is supported through formula grant. Since formula grant is an unhypothecated block grant, and due to the calculations of formula grant, particularly floor damping, it is not possible to say how much grant has been provided for the support of capital expenditure.

Local Government Services

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he plans to extend Total Place pilots to include  (a) the Stroud district and  (b) other rural areas.

Rosie Winterton: 13 Total Place pilot authorities were chosen to ensure a diverse mix of economic, geographical and demographic profiles. This includes rural areas.
	There are also over 70 parallel places, urban and rural, undertaking Total Place type activity. These numbers continue to rise as more and more local authorities begin to consider the real potential of a whole area approach, looking at all the services in their area and consider how they can bring about much needed change in the way these services can be delivered more effectively and efficiently.

Operational Efficiency Programme

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what efficiency savings projects  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies put in place under the Operational Efficiency Programme; on what date each such project was initiated; how much each such project was expected to contribute to departmental savings; how much had been saved through each such project on the latest date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Barbara Follett: The Department is approaching the efficiency agenda as a group endeavour in close collaboration with our arms length bodies and Government offices. We have made good progress on delivering on the Operational Efficiency Programme and have a range of initiatives in place to deliver efficiencies. These include implementing shared services and rationalising back office systems; collaborative procurement, where we are reviewing and renewing supplier arrangements across a range of common goods and services; consolidation of office accommodation and implementing open plan and flexible desk sharing and rationalisation of our group estate. For our arms length bodies, delivering efficiencies is about transforming service delivery models and improving front-line services to drive down costs. We continue to work closely with our ALBs as they implement these initiatives.

Public Works Loans Board: Croydon

Malcolm Wicks: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will make an assessment of the circumstances necessitating Croydon Council's loan of 145.6 million from the Public Works Loans Board; and if he will make a statement.

Barbara Follett: It is not appropriate for the Department to make such an assessment or a statement on this matter. Decisions on self-financed borrowing are a matter for local authorities. The Prudential borrowing system imposes a duty for local authorities to determine and keep under review the amount they can afford to borrow.

Shared Ownership Schemes: East of England

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many shared ownership purchases have been made by people on social housing waiting lists in  (a) Peterborough constituency,  (b) Peterborough City Council area and  (c) Cambridgeshire in each year since 2001; and what proportion of all such sales in each of those areas this represented in each such year.

John Healey: Information on shared ownership purchases is not available on a constituency basis.
	The available information for shared ownership sales in Peterborough unitary authority and Cambridgeshire is shown in the following tables. The numbers exclude sales by registered social landlords with less than 250 units/bedspaces. Information on whether sales were to people on a housing waiting list is missing in some cases, and was only collected up to 2006-07. The percentage of shared ownership sales to people on waiting lists was not calculated due to missing information.
	From April 2006, applicants for grant funded shared ownership properties apply direct to homebuy agents (appointed housing associations) who carry out eligibility and affordability checks and handle the application process.
	
		
			  Table 1: Shared ownership completions in Peterborough 
			Of which: 
			   Shared ownership sales  Sales to people on housing waiting lists  Sales to people not on housing waiting lists  Sales for which waiting list information is not available 
			 2001-02 0 0 0 0 
			 2002-03 0 0 0 0 
			 2003-04 0 0 0 0 
			 2004-05 9 (1)- (1)- (1)- 
			 2005-06 23 17 (1)- (1)- 
			 2006-07 49 9 20 20 
			 2007-08 58 n/a n/a n/a 
			 2008-09 53 n/a n/a n/a 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 : Shared ownership completions in  Cambridgeshire 
			Of which: 
			   Shared ownership sales  Sales to people on housing waiting lists  Sales to people not on housing waiting lists  Sales for which waiting list information is not available 
			 2001-02 16 10 (1)- (1)- 
			 2002-03 6 (1)- (1)- (1)- 
			 2003-04 90 42 41 7 
			 2004-05 63 30 20 13 
			 2005-06 91 52 25 14 
			 2006-07 212 71 88 53 
			 2007-08 209 n/a n/a n/a 
			 2008-09 227 n/a n/a n/a 
			 n/a = Not applicable. (1) No reliable estimate due to less than five respondents.  Source: CORE (continuous recording) returns to the Tenant Services Authority (TSA) from registered social landlords (RSLs).

Sustainable Communities Act 2007

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the timetable is for the second round of bids under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007.

Rosie Winterton: The Government are committed to the effective implementation of the Sustainable Communities Act 2007. The first round has generated 301 proposals that are currently being considered by the Local Government Association as Selector, before being submitted to the Secretary of State. We intend to review the first round of proposals once decisions have been taken in order to ensure implementation of the second round of proposals is as effective as possible. This will allow the second round to benefit from feedback from communities, local authorities, the Selector and the Third Sector on how the process might be improved. This will ensure that we can be clear from the outset about the way that future proposals will be handled.

Sustainable Communities Act 2007

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the timetable is for  (a) considering and  (b) approving the first round of bids under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007.

Rosie Winterton: The Government are currently co-operating with the Local Government Association, appointed as Selector, as they draw up a short-list of the proposals from local authorities, under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007, which they believe would improve the sustainability of their local area. I understand the Selector Panel is due to meet on 22 December 2009 and is expected to submit the short-list to the Secretary of State thereafter. The Secretary of State will then consult the Selector and try to reach agreement on which proposals should be implemented.
	The timing of these decisions will depend on the number and complexity of the proposals on the short-list.

Sustainable Communities Act 2007

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent discussions he has had with the Local Government Association in its role as Selector under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007.

Rosie Winterton: The Government are currently co-operating with the Local Government Association (LGA), in its role as Selector, as the LGA draws up a short-list of the proposals from local authorities, under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007, which they believe would improve the sustainability of their local area. As part of the co-operation process, officials from the Department for Communities and Local Government have met with the Local Government Association on a number of occasions.
	The Government have also shared with the LGA factual information on the proposals, including material on whether proposals are likely to be already within the existing powers of local authorities; whether proposals are likely to require additional public expenditure; information on the cost-benefit and broad impact of proposals; and details of existing policy positions for which the Government are publicly accountable.
	These meetings will continue once the short-list has been received. Ministers will also engage with members of the Selector Panel in order to try to reach agreement before final decisions are made.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has for its forthcoming clinical strategy for chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases.

Ann Keen: The national health service, Department of Health and key stakeholders have been working together over the last three years to develop a comprehensive strategy for improving services for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in England, and intend to publish it shortly for public consultation.
	The strategy will demonstrate how we have reviewed the case for change and identified good practice based on published evidence, whenever available, in slowing the progression of this long term condition. The strategy will describe how the Department and NHS can work together to ensure that the public understand the risks of having poor lung health, and that health care practitioners understand how to secure improvements to the diagnosis and care of people with COPD. We also want to support people with COPD and their carers by offering practical advice and education on managing their disease.

Departmental Meetings

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which  (a) individuals other than ministerial colleagues and officials of his Department and  (b) organisations he met in an official capacity in the week commencing 9 November 2009.

Phil Hope: In its response to a Report by the Public Administration Select Committee Lobbying: Access and influence in Whitehall, the Government agreed to publish on-line, on a quarterly basis, information about ministerial meetings with outside interest groups. Information for the period 1 October to 31 December 2009 will be published by departments as soon as the information is ready.

Departmental Taxis

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many miles  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials in his Department travelled by taxi in the course of their official duties in each year since 1997; and at what cost to the public purse in each such year.

Phil Hope: The Department holds information on its taxi contract expenditure from 2004-05. We are unable to separate out mileage information between Ministers and officials, as this distinction is not collected. The total expenditure against each contract along with the associated mileage, where kept, is as follows:
	
		
			   Addison Lee  ()  GDCA Green Cars  ()  Mileage 
			 2004-05 423,212 - (1)- 
			 2005-06 412,695 - 140,233 
			 2006-07 306,310 - 113,232 
			 2007-08 336,934 - 121,327 
			 2008-09 291,985 22,935 120,388 
			 2009-10 (until October 2009) 184,539 27,003 79,794 
			 (1 )Not kept. 
		
	
	Both contracts were cancelled recently in order to reduce the Department's carbon footprint and save money.

Genetically Modified Organisms: Research

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research projects funded by  (a) his Department and  (b) the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council in the last 10-years on which he relies to fulfil his responsibility to ensure that genetically modified food is safe to eat have been designed specifically to show whether there are risks of adverse health effects for people for the consumption of genetically modified food.

Ann Keen: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has commissioned work under three research programmes relevant to the safety of genetically modified (GM) foods. Prior to April 2000 food safety research was the responsibility of the Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food (MAFF). The research funded by the FSA and MAFF has included a series of projects aimed at either better understanding the consequences of genetic modification, or exploring new/improved methods for use in the safety assessment of GM organisms such as metabolomics and genomics. Details of the individual projects commissioned by MAFF and the FSA are available on the research pages of the FSA's website at:
	www.food.gov.uk/science/research/researchinfo/foodcomponentsresearch/novelfoodsresearch/
	The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council has not funded any research during the last 10-years specifically to show whether there are risks of adverse health effects for people from the consumption of GM food, but it has funded one project to analyse gene transfer from food plants to human intestinal microflora and intestinal epithelium, which is relevant to the safety assessment of foods obtained from GM crops.

Medical Records: Data Protection

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when his Department will publish the Report on the Summary of Responses to the Consultation on the Additional Uses of Patient Data; and what the reasons are for the time taken to publish the report.

Mike O'Brien: The report was published on 30 November 2009. Deferment of publication from the originally-planned date has been due to the need for extended and detailed analysis of both quantifiable data and free text responses to ensure the report fairly reflects all respondents' views, and to avoid bias which could have arisen because of disproportionate response rates from different constituencies. The analysis was then further reviewed for consistency.

Medical Research: Expenditure

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much Government funding has been allocated to medical research in each year since 1996-97.

Gillian Merron: Government funding for medical research is provided principally through the Department's national health service research and development budget and the Medical Research Council. The amounts allocated in each year since 1996-97 are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Government health research funding 
			   million 
			   Medical Research Council  NHS Research and Development 
			 1996-97 n/a 432 
			 1997-98 289 426 
			 1998-99 290 420 
			 1999-2000 305 434 
			 2000-01 319 448 
			 2001-02 350 475 
			 2002-03 372 506 
			 2003-04 430 533 
			 2004-05 458 601 
			 2005-06 481 617 
			 2006-07 504 659 
			 2007-08 552 730 
			 2008-09 617 792 
			 2009-10 699 862 
			 (1) n/a = Not available

National Centre for Stereotactic Radiosurgery: Standards

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment his Department has made of the performance of the National Centre of Stereotactic Radiosurgery in meeting the NHS 18-week pathway target; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: The Department has not made a specific assessment regards the National Centre of Stereotactic Radiosurgery and data on the performance of the National Centre of Stereotactic Radiosurgery are not held centrally.
	Referral to treatment (RTT) data, which show how trusts are performing against the 18-week operational standard, are collected at treatment function level and at provider level. Patients who are treated at the National Centre of Stereotactic Radiosurgery are recorded under the RTT data for Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
	The latest RTT data (September 2009) show that 61.7 per cent. of admitted patients, and 72.8 per cent, of non-admitted patients received neurosurgery treatment at Sheffield teaching hospitals within 18-weeks of referral by their general practitioner.

NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency: Contracts

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department expects the Purchasing and Supply Agency to pay in contract payments to DHL over the contract period.

Mike O'Brien: The Department signed a 10-year Master Services Agreement with DHL on 4 September 2006 for the provision of procurement and supply chain services, trading under the name of NHS Supply Chain (NHS SC).
	NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency (NHS PASA) paid 17.1 million between 2006-09 to cover the costs and liabilities of employees who transferred from NHS PASA to NHS SC under the transfer of undertakings (protection of employment) regulations.
	No further contractual payments are anticipated.

NHS: Disclosure of Information

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to  (a) strengthen whistleblowing procedures for hospital staff and  (b) encourage constructive criticism of working practices from hospital staff.

Ann Keen: We expect national health service trusts to have policies in place that encourage feedback from staff and pre-empt the need to whistleblow. For those rare occasions where whistleblowing is the appropriate course of action, we have provided unprecedented protection for individuals and we emphasise in the NHS constitution the right not to be unfairly dismissed for 'whistleblowing' or reporting wrongdoing. Listening to and acting upon concerns of staff are vital ways to drive up standards.
	Following the recommendations of the recent House of Commons Select Committee report on Patient Safety, the Department will be updating and re-issuing guidance to the NHS, working in conjunction with NHS Employers, Public Concern at Work and Trade Unions.
	The pack is intended to help employers who are in the process of creating or updating their whistleblowing procedures.

Nurses

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of physical assaults on nurses and other hospital staff.

Ann Keen: Each national health service body has a duty to address the risks to staff and ensure their safety. The NHS Security Management Service (NHS SMS) can assist employers through guidance on assessing risks and acting to protect staff from assaults and, where incidents do occur, on taking action against offenders. The Department and the NHS SMS will also work with the Social Partnership Forum to promote the security of HNS staff and reduce assaults.
	A new offence of causing nuisance or disturbance on hospital premises and a power to remove someone suspected of committing this offence were supported by the Department in the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008. The purpose of these measures is to remove those whose actions may escalate into violence and whose behaviour diverts staff from delivering care. Consultation on guidance on the use of the powers took place between May and August and the powers will be commenced on 30 November 2009. The NHS SMS will provide free training for NHS staff who will use the power of removal.

Nurses

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking  (a) to increase the level of access to specialist nursing care and  (b) reduce hospital admission rates.

Ann Keen: Local national health service organisations are responsible for the skill mix of their work force including the number of specialist nurses. They are best placed to assess the health needs of their local community and must have the freedom to train and deploy staff in ways appropriate for local conditions.
	To help trusts develop specialist nursing roles we have published Long Term Neurological Conditions: A good practice guide to the development of the multidisciplinary team and the value of the specialist nurse. This guide has been prepared for commissioners and managers to highlight the role and contribution of specialist nurses. These principles are transferable to other specialities.
	Copies of this guidance have already been placed in the Library and can be found on the Skills for Health website at:
	www.healthcareworkforce.nhs.uk/resources/latest_resources/long_term_neurological_conditions.html
	Reducing unplanned and unnecessary hospital admissions is part of the Department's strategy to improve care and services for people with long-term conditions. The focus has been on implementing case management for those with complex health and social care needs who are most at risk of unplanned admissions. This is led by a community matron or other case manager who provides co-ordinated, proactive and personalised care at home or in the community setting.
	In addition, the Department has made a commitment that everyone with a long-term condition will be offered a care plan by 2010. Personalised care planning and support for self care will enable people with long-term conditions to plan their care, have strategies in place to cope with any exacerbations of their conditions, and have all the relevant information they need to make decisions about their health and well-being. This should reduce use of secondary care services, including unplanned admissions.
	In the National Service Framework for Long Term Neurological Conditions, we had made it clear that specialist advice and treatment can be cost-neutral and may reduce admissions and length of stay and improve well-being. It is for local NHS organisations to implement this guidance.

Primary Care Trusts: Finance

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what timetable he has set for the allocation to primary care trusts of funding at the level determined by the formula announced in December 2008.

Mike O'Brien: We are committed to moving all primary care trusts (PCTs) towards their target allocations as quickly as possible. In 2009-10 and 2010-11, we have ensured that the most under-target PCTs benefit from the highest increases in funding.
	Over those two years, revenue allocations represent 164 billion investment in the national health service, 80 billion in 2009-10 and 84 billion in 2010-11. PCTs received an average increase in funding of 5.5 per cent. in 2009-10 and will receive an average increase in funding of 5.5 per cent. in 2010-11, a total increase in funding of 8.6 billion.
	No decisions have yet been taken on the future rate of progress towards target allocations. The rate at which PCTs will move towards their target allocation in future years will need to be considered in light of a number of factors including population changes, cost pressures and the overall resources available to the NHS.

Antisocial Behaviour Orders: Young People

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many anti-social behaviour orders were issued to those under the age of 18 years and in the care or supervision of local authorities in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many people under the age of 16 years received an anti-social behaviour order in each of the last five years.

Alan Campbell: Data on the number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued collected centrally by my Department do not include details of whether or not ASBO recipients were in the care or supervision of a local authority at the time their ASBO was issued. This information could be ascertained only by reference to individual court files, which could be achieved only at disproportionate cost.
	Available published data on the number of ASBOs issued provides an age group breakdown showing those ASBO recipients aged 10-17 and those 18 plus.
	The number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued to persons under the age of 18 at all courts in England and Wales in each year between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2007 (latest available) is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued to persons under 18 years of age( 1)  at all courts( 2)  in England and Wales, 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2007 
			  England and Wales  Issued (aged 10-17) 
			 2003 628 
			 2004 1,340 
			 2005 1,581 
			 2006 1,053 
			 2007 920 
			 (1) Where the age has been reported. (2) This includes magistrates courts when acting both in their civil capacity issuing ASBOs on application and their criminal capacity when issuing ASBOs following conviction for a criminal offence.  Notes: 1. Previously issued data have been revised. 2. Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: As reported to the Home Office by the Court Service.

Antisocial Behaviour Orders: Young People

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the number of anti-social behaviour orders issued to those under the age of 16 years which were breached where  (a) a parenting order and  (b) an individual support order was also issued in the last 12 months;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of anti-social behaviour orders issued to those under the age of 17 years in 2008 had an individual support order attached.

Alan Campbell: The information requested on the number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued to those under the age of 16 years which were breached where a parenting order and an individual support order was also issued is not available.
	ASBO breach data compiled by my Department do not include details of whether defendants proven in court to have breached their ASBO were subject to either an individual support order or a parenting order. This information could be ascertained only by examination of individual court files, which could be achieved only at disproportionate cost.
	Data on the number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued in 2008 are not yet available.

Antisocial Behaviour: Crime Prevention

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of  (a) individual support orders and  (b) intervention orders in preventing anti-social behaviour.

Alan Campbell: The Home Office has commissioned two pieces of work evaluating interventions to tackle antisocial behaviour. These are:
	Research to examine local variations in the use of antisocial behaviour interventions. This was the first step to developing further work into the comparative effectiveness of different approaches to tackling antisocial behaviour. The findings of this study are due to be published soon; and
	An evaluation of the comparative effectiveness of interventions to address antisocial behaviour. Results from this evaluation are due in spring 2010.
	Three independent reports have confirmed that our approach to tackling antisocial behaviour is working. The National Audit Office (NAO) reported that two thirds of people stop committing ASB after one intervention, rising to nine out of 10 after three interventions. Many of these were warning letters and antisocial behaviour contracts which are voluntary measures.

Assaults on Police

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers were  (a) shot at,  (b) injured by shootings and  (c) killed by shootings in each police force area in (i) 2007-08 and (ii) 2008-09.

David Hanson: Available information relates to 2007-08 and is given in the following table.
	Data for 2008-09 are scheduled to be published in January 2010.
	
		
			  Crimes recorded by the police in which firearms (excluding air weapons) were fired and the principle victim was a police officer on duty, England and Wales, 2007-08 
			  Number of offences 
			  Police force area  Total  Total resulting in injury( 1)  Total resulting in fatal injury 
			  North-east region
			 Cleveland - - - 
			 Durham - - - 
			 Northumbria - - - 
			 
			  North-west region
			 Cheshire - - - 
			 Cumbria - - - 
			 Greater Manchester 2 1 - 
			 Lancashire 7 7 - 
			 Merseyside 4 1 - 
			 
			  Yorkshire and the Humber region
			 Humberside - - - 
			 North Yorkshire - - - 
			 South Yorkshire - - - 
			 West Yorkshire 1 1 - 
			 
			  East  M idlands region
			 Derbyshire - - - 
			 Leicestershire - - - 
			 Lincolnshire - - - 
			 Northamptonshire - - - 
			 Nottinghamshire 2 1 - 
			 
			  West  M idlands region
			 Staffordshire - - - 
			 Warwickshire 1 1 - 
			 West Mercia 2 1 1 
			 West midlands 4 3 - 
			 
			  East of England region
			 Bedfordshire - - - 
			 Cambridgeshire - - - 
			 Essex - - - 
			 Hertfordshire - - - 
			 Norfolk - - - 
			 Suffolk 1 - - 
			 
			  London region 6 1 - 
			 
			  South-east region
			 Hampshire - - - 
			 Kent - - - 
			 Surrey - - - 
			 Sussex - - - 
			 Thames Valley 2 2 - 
			 
			  South-west region
			 Avon and Somerset 1 - - 
			 Devon and Cornwall - - - 
			 Dorset - - - 
			 Gloucestershire 1 - - 
			 Wiltshire - - - 
			 
			  Wales
			 Dyfed-Powys - - - 
			 Gwent - - - 
			 North Wales - - - 
			 South Wales - - - 
			 
			  England and Wales 34 19 1 
			 (1) Includes slight, serious (which necessitated detention in hospital or involved fractures, concussion, severe general shock, penetration by a bullet or multiple shot wounds) and fatal injuries.

Crime and Disorder Act 1988

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many parenting orders have been issued under section 8 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 where  (a) an anti-social behaviour order has been made,  (b) a child or young person has been convicted of an offence and  (c) in any other relevant proceedings in each of the last three years.

Alan Campbell: Parenting Orders under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 were piloted between 30 September 1998 and 31 March 2000 and commenced in England and Wales in June 2000. The Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003, the Criminal Justice Act 2003, Police and Justice Act 2005, and the Education and Inspects Act 2006 amended Parenting Orders to increase their flexibility and widen their availability.
	The available information is shown in the following table which has been provided by the Youth Justice Board based on the parenting orders that youth offending teams were involved in.
	
		
			  Parenting Orders by legal basis England and Wales YOTs 
			  England and Wales  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  Total 
			 Crime 1,069 1,014 1,049 3,132 
			 Education 213 166 230 609 
			 Other - - - 0 
			 Referral Order 183 227 295 705 
			 ASBO 33 64 46 143 
			 Sex Offences Prevention Order 0 1 0 1 
			 Child Safety Order 0 1 0 1 
			 Free Standing-YOT 7 16 8 31 
			 Free Standing-LEA 0 18 21 39 
			 Total - - - 4,661 
			  Note: Data for Education and Free Standing-LEA categories may not be complete, as YOTs are not always informed of these Parenting Orders.

Crime: Public Transport

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many arrests for  (a) drunk and disorderly conduct,  (b) assault,  (c) battery,  (d) sexual assault,  (e) indecent exposure,  (f) theft and  (g) breach of an anti-social behaviour order there were on (i) trains, (ii) buses and (iii) aeroplanes in each of the last five years in the lowest recorded administrative division for which figures are available, broken down by the (A) age and (B) ethnicity of the person arrested.

Alan Campbell: The information requested on arrests is not collected centrally.
	The arrests collection held by the Home Office covers arrests for recorded crime (notifiable offences) only, broken down at a main offence group level, covering categories such as violence against the person, sexual offences, robbery, burglary and drugs offences. The data are also broken down by age group, gender, ethnicity and police force area.
	It is not possible to identify the number of arrests there were made on buses, trains or aeroplanes.

Crimes of Violence

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what percentage of incidents of violence against the person involved a  (a) knife,  (b) hitting implement,  (c) glass or bottle,  (d) stabbing implement,  (e) firearm,  (f) stone or stones,  (g) syringe and  (h) other implement in each police force area in 2008-09.

Alan Campbell: There are two main sources of crime statistics produced by the Home Office, the British Crime Survey (BCS) and police recorded crime.
	The BCS is a victimisation survey in which respondents are asked about their experiences of crime in the last 12 months. Within this survey, respondents are asked about their experience of the use of weapons in violent incidents. Due to the relatively low number of people who experience a violent incident with a weapon, it is not possible to provide data at the police force area level.
	It is possible to provide some information from various police recorded crime data sources, for knife and sharp instruments and firearm offences.
	Knife and sharp instrument offences are collected by the Home Office by a special additional data collection. These data include offences where a knife or sharp instrument has been used to stab or cut, or in a threat. Included within the definition of 'Sharp instruments' are stabbing implements, bottles and glass (when broken prior to the offence) and syringes. These data are shown in Table A. The offences covered by this collection which fall within the violence against the person category are attempted murder, threats to kill, GBH and ABH.
	Firearms offences data are also collected at force level via a special additional data collection. These are shown in Table B. The number of offences covered are greater than for the knife and sharp instrument collection, covering all offences within violence against the person where firearms could conceivable be used.
	Tables A and B exclude homicide data as the 2008-09 data are not yet available. Publication has been pre-announced for 21 January 2010.
	No data from police recorded crime is available for the other weapons types requested, hitting implements, stones or other implement.
	
		
			  Table A: Knife and sharp instrument offences recorded by the police for selected violence against the person offences, 2008-09 
			  Number and percentage 
			   Total of selected violence against the person offences (attempted murder, threats to kill, ABH and GBH)( 1, 2) 
			  Police force area, English regions and Wales  Offences involving a knife  Percentage involving a knife 
			 Cleveland 157 3 
			 Durham 121 3 
			 Northumbria 335 3 
			 North East Region 613 3 
			
			 Cheshire 474 7 
			 Cumbria 72 2 
			 Greater Manchester 1,244 5 
			 Lancashire 592 5 
			 Merseyside 456 6 
			 North West Region 2,838 6 
			
			 Humberside 256 3 
			 North Yorkshire 175 4 
			 South Yorkshire 397 3 
			 West Yorkshire 693 4 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber Region 1,521 3 
			
			 Derbyshire 303 3 
			 Leicestershire 270 3 
			 Lincolnshire 126 3 
			 Northamptonshire 224 4 
			 Nottinghamshire 433 4 
			 East Midlands Region 1,356 4 
			
			 Staffordshire 591 6 
			 Warwickshire 149 5 
			 West Mercia 160 2 
			 West Midlands 1,801 6 
			 West Midlands Region 2,701 5 
			
			 Bedfordshire 212 5 
			 Cambridgeshire 261 5 
			 Essex 399 4 
			 Hertfordshire 60 1 
			 Norfolk 83 2 
			 Suffolk 151 4 
			 East of England Region 1,166 4 
			
			 London, City of 19 5 
			 Metropolitan Police 5,242 7 
			 London Region 5,261 7 
			
			 Hampshire 420 3 
			 Kent 374 3 
			 Surrey 101 2 
			 Sussex 534 6 
			 Thames Valley 668 4 
			 South East Region 2,097 4 
			
			 Avon and Somerset 523 5 
			 Devon and Cornwall 299 3 
			 Dorset 30 1 
			 Gloucestershire 124 3 
			 Wiltshire 138 4 
			 South West Region 1,114 3 
			
			 England 18,667 5 
			
			 Dyfed-Powys 91 3 
			 Gwent 111 2 
			 North Wales 125 3 
			 South Wales 374 4 
			 Wales 701 3 
			
			 British Transport Police 112 4 
			
			 England and Wales 19,480 5 
			 (1) Other violence against the person offences exist that are not included in this table that may include the use of a knife or sharp instrument. In this table 'offences involving a knife' refers to the use of a knife or sharp instrument. (2) Homicide data will not be available until January 2010. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B: Firearms offences recorded by the police for violence against the person offences, 2008-09 
			  Number and percentage 
			   Violence against the person offences( 1) 
			  Police force area, English regions and Wales  Offences involving a firearm  Percentage involving a firearm 
			 Cleveland 42 0.4 
			 Durham 18 0.2 
			 Northumbria 89 0.5 
			 North East Region 149 0.4 
			
			 Cheshire 42 0.3 
			 Cumbria 36 0.5 
			 Greater Manchester 440 1.0 
			 Lancashire 107 0.5 
			 Merseyside 178 0.9 
			 North West Region 803 0.7 
			
			 Humberside 54 0.3 
			 North Yorkshire 14 0.2 
			 South Yorkshire 135 0.7 
			 West Yorkshire 254 0.7 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber Region 457 0.6 
			
			 Derbyshire 77 0.5 
			 Leicestershire 67 0.4 
			 Lincolnshire 22 0.2 
			 Northamptonshire 74 0.8 
			 Nottinghamshire 112 0.6 
			 East Midlands Region 352 0.5 
			
			 Staffordshire 50 0.3 
			 Warwickshire 34 0.6 
			 West Mercia 69 0.5 
			 West Midlands 493 1.0 
			 West Midlands Region 646 0.7 
			
			 Bedfordshire 20 0.3 
			 Cambridgeshire 21 0.2 
			 Essex 128 0.6 
			 Hertfordshire 25 0.2 
			 Norfolk 21 0.2 
			 Suffolk 22 0.2 
			 East of England Region 237 0.3 
			
			 London, City of 2 0.2 
			 Metropolitan Police 1,295 0.7 
			 London Region 1,297 0.7 
			
			 Hampshire 95 0.3 
			 Kent 77 0.3 
			 Surrey 56 0.4 
			 Sussex 29 0.1 
			 Thames Valley 102 0.2 
			 South East Region 359 0.3 
			
			 Avon and Somerset 107 0.4 
			 Devon and Cornwall 79 0.4 
			 Dorset 11 0.1 
			 Gloucestershire 46 0.5 
			 Wiltshire 41 0.5 
			 South West Region 284 0.4 
			
			 England 4,584 0.5 
			
			 Dyfed-Powys 16 0.3 
			 Gwent 55 0.6 
			 North Wales 49 0.4 
			 South Wales 62 0.3 
			 Wales 182 0.4 
			
			 British Transport Police(2) - - 
			
			 England and Wales 4,766 0.5 
			 (1) Homicide data will not be available until January 2010. (2) Data are not collected for British Transport Police.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was of maintaining his Department's website in the 2008-09 financial year; and what the forecast cost is of maintaining websites within his responsibility in the 2009-10 financial year.

Phil Woolas: The costs of maintaining Home Office websites (i.e. hosting, licensing, domain registration, and updates but excluding staff costs) has been as follows:
	2008-09: 577,000
	The projected cost for the financial year 2009-10 is 593,000. Again, this covers hosting, licensing, domain registration, and updates but excludes staff costs.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much revenue has been received from student visas in the last  (a) year and  (b) five years.

Phil Woolas: The information is as follows:
	 (a) In the last year (12 months ended September 2009), 51,959,697 has been received from student visa and PBS tier 4 applications, including those from dependents
	 (b) In the last five years (60 months ended September 2009), 166,833,972 has been received from student visa and PBS tier 4 applications, including those from dependents.

Fires: Atherstone on Stour

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with Warwickshire Police Authority on Government assistance for funding the police inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the firefighter fatalities at Atherstone on Stour, Warwickshire on 2 November 2007; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: We have regular discussions with representatives of Warwickshire police authority.
	I have provided 3.045 million special grant to Warwickshire police to support this operation. I will also consider further requests from the police authority under the special grant criteria.

Missing Persons

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of missing  (a) children and  (b) adults of each (i) age group, (ii) nationality and (iii) region of residence have been recorded by the Missing Persons Bureau of the National Policing Improvement Agency since April 2008.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 26 November 2009
	The HERMES database used for the recording of missing persons data is an operational database used for policing purposes. The data are normally only used for management information and are not subject to the detailed checks that apply to National Statistics publications. The data are therefore provisional and may be subject to change.
	A code of practice for the collection of missing persons data was introduced in April 2009. Although limited data has been collected as some police forces have implemented the code, it is unlikely that any meaningful and complete national picture of missing persons will be available until 2010, when all police forces will become compliant with the code. Meanwhile the available figures can be regarded as indicative only.
	2,855 adults and 1,862 children were reported as missing to the Missing Persons Bureau between 1 April 2008 and 31 October 2009. Note that these figures relate to incidents of missing rather than individuals; the same person can go missing several times. 3,774 (80 per cent.) of these cases have subsequently been marked as 'closed' on the database (i.e. the missing person has returned or been located). However, research suggests(1) that 99 per cent. of missing persons are located within one year of going missing. Not all cancellations are received by the bureau. As force compliance with the code increases of the percentage of closed cases on HERMES will increase.
	Data relating to cases of missing  (a) children and  (b) adults of each (i) age group and (ii) nationality are given in the following tables. Data relating to 'age' are given at the date of extraction from the database. The data have been grouped by Association of Chief Police Officers region and a total figure has been given for each region.
	(1) Tarling, R. and Burrows, J. (2004) The nature and outcome of going missing: the challenge of developing effective risk assessment procedures', International Journal of Police Science and Management, Vol.6, No. 1, 16-26.
	
		
			  Table 1a: Children recorded as missing by Missing Persons Bureau , 1 April 2008 to 31 October 2009 
			  Number 
			  Age g roup  Nationality  Total 
			  0-4 Afghanistan (1)- 
			  Argentinian (1)- 
			  British 20 
			  Indian (1)- 
			  Iraqi (1)- 
			  Polish 3 
			  Romanian (1)- 
			  Sierra Leoneon (1)- 
			  Sri Lankan (1)- 
			  Unknown 39 
			  Vietnamese (1)- 
			 0-4 Total  71 
			
			  5-8 American (1)- 
			  British 16 
			  Korean (1)- 
			  Portuguese (1)- 
			  Unknown 26 
			 5-8 Total  47 
			
			  9-11 American (1)- 
			  Bangladeshi (1)- 
			  British 11 
			  Bulgarian (1)- 
			  Czech (1)- 
			  Indian (1)- 
			  Italian (1)- 
			  Nigerian (1)- 
			  Sudanese (1)- 
			  Ugandan (1)- 
			  Unknown 33 
			 9-11 Total  53 
			
			  12-14 Afghanistan 5 
			  Austrian (1)- 
			  British 138 
			  Czech (1)- 
			  French (1)- 
			  Ghanian (1)- 
			  Iraqi (1)- 
			  Jamaican (1)- 
			  Kosovan (1)- 
			  Moroccan 3 
			  Nigerian (1)- 
			  Pakistani (1)- 
			  Romanian 3 
			  Turkmenistanian (1)- 
			  Unknown 166 
			  Vietnamese 3 
			 12-14 Total  328 
			
			  15-17 Afghanistan 104 
			  African 3 
			  Albanian 4 
			  Algerian 8 
			  American (1)- 
			  Angolan (1)- 
			  Bangladeshi (1)- 
			  Brazilian (1)- 
			  British 505 
			  Bulgarian (1)- 
			  Burundian (1)- 
			  Chinese 20 
			  Colombian (1)- 
			  Congolese (1)- 
			  Czech (1)- 
			  Egyptian (1)- 
			  Eritrean 11 
			  Ethiopian (1)- 
			  Finnish (1)- 
			  French (1)- 
			  Ghanian (1)- 
			  Indian 12 
			  Indonesian (1)- 
			  Iranian 3 
			  Iraqi 4 
			  Irish (1)- 
			  Italian (1)- 
			  Jamaican (1)- 
			  Kosovan (1)- 
			  Kuwaiti (1)- 
			  Latvian (1)- 
			  Lithuanian (1)- 
			  Moldovan (1)- 
			  Moroccan 3 
			  Nigerian (1)- 
			  Norwegian (1)- 
			  Pakistani 3 
			  Palestinian 3 
			  Polish 11 
			  Portuguese 3 
			  Romanian 5 
			  Sierra Leoneon (1)- 
			  Somalian 4 
			  South African (1)- 
			  Sudanese (1)- 
			  Thai (1)- 
			  Turkish (1)- 
			  Ukrainian (1)- 
			  Unknown 552 
			  Vietnamese 65 
			  Zimbabwean 3 
			 15-17 Total  1,363 
			
			 0-17 Total  1,862 
			 (1) Less than 3.  Note: Exact figures in individual cells hidden to protect statistical confidentiality. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 1b: Children recorded as missing by Missing Persons Bureau ,  April 2008 to October 2009 
			  Number 
			   Age group 
			  ACPO Region  0-4 t otal  5-8 t otal  9-11 t otal  12-14 t otal  15-17 t otal  0-17 t otal 
			 East Midlands 8 3 3 47 138 199 
			 Eastern 5 3 7 23 93 131 
			 London 7 4 7 11 87 116 
			 North East (1)- (1)- 9 38 87 137 
			 North West 17 10 5 28 144 204 
			 Scotland 4 (1)- (1)- (1)- (2)- 12 
			 South East 6  6 74 372 458 
			 South West 4 (1)- (1)- 19 55 80 
			 Wales (1)- 3 (1)- 10 32 47 
			 West Midlands 11 8 3 43 177 242 
			 International (1)- (1)- (1)- (1)- (2)- 7 
			 Unknown 8 11 7 32 171 229 
			 Total 71 47 53 328 1,363 1,862 
			 (1) Less than 3. (2) 5 or less.  Note: Exact figures in individual cells hidden to protect statistical confidentiality. Age group is based on age as at 23 November 2009. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2a: Adults recorded as missing by Missing Persons Bureau ,  1 April 2008 to 31 October 2009 
			  Number 
			  Age g roup  Nationality  Total 
			  18-21 Afghanistan 35 
			  Albanian (1)- 
			  Algerian (1)- 
			  American (1)- 
			  British 169 
			  Cameroonian (1)- 
			  Chinese 26 
			  Congolese (1)- 
			  Czech 3 
			  Dutch (1)- 
			  Eritrean 5 
			  Ethiopian (1)- 
			  French (1)- 
			  Gambian (1)- 
			  German (1)- 
			  Ghanian (1)- 
			  Greek (1)- 
			  Hungarian (1)- 
			  Indian 17 
			  Iranian 4 
			  Iraqi 6 
			  Irish (1)- 
			  Ivory Coastian (1)- 
			  Jamaican (1)- 
			  Lithuanian (1)- 
			  Mauritanian (1)- 
			  Moldovan (1)- 
			  Nigerian 9 
			  Pakistani 5 
			  Palestinian 4 
			  Polish 3 
			  Portuguese (1)- 
			  Romanian 6 
			  Sierra Leoneon (1)- 
			  Slovakian (1)- 
			  Somalian 10 
			  Sudanese (1)- 
			  Turkish 4 
			  Ukrainian (1)- 
			  Unknown 140 
			  Vietnamese 12 
			  Zambian (1)- 
			  Zimbabwean (1)- 
			 18-21 Total  490 
			
			  22-39 Afghanistan 3 
			  African (1)- 
			  Albanian 6 
			  Algerian (1)- 
			  American (1)- 
			  Angolan (1)- 
			  Antiguan (1)- 
			  Argentinian (1)- 
			  Australian 3 
			  Bangladeshi 3 
			  British 534 
			  Burmese (1)- 
			  Cameroonian 3 
			  Canadian (1)- 
			  Chinese 13 
			  Colombian (1)- 
			  Congolese 3 
			  Czech (1)- 
			  Danish (1)- 
			  Dutch 4 
			  Egyptian (1)- 
			  Eritrean (1)- 
			  Ethiopian 3 
			  Fijian (1)- 
			  Filipino 8 
			  French 8 
			  Gambian 4 
			  German (1)- 
			  Ghanian 3 
			  Greek 3 
			  Hong Kongelease (1)- 
			  Hungarian (1)- 
			  Indian 19 
			  Indonesian (1)- 
			  Iranian (1)- 
			  Iraqi 8 
			  Irish 8 
			  Italian (1)- 
			  Jamaican (1)- 
			  Japanese (1)- 
			  Kenyan 3 
			  Korean (1)- 
			  Kosovan (1)- 
			  Laosian (1)- 
			  Latvian (1)- 
			  Lithuanian 6 
			  Mongolian (1)- 
			  Moroccan 4 
			  Nepalese 3 
			  New Zealander (1)- 
			  Nigerian 10 
			  Pakistani 13 
			  Polish 28 
			  Portuguese 9 
			  Romanian 17 
			  Russian 6 
			  Samoan (1)- 
			  Saudi Arabian (1)- 
			  Sierra Leoneon (1)- 
			  Slovakian 4 
			  Somalian 14 
			  South African 4 
			  Sri Lankan 3 
			  Sudanese (1)- 
			  Swedish 3 
			  Tanzanian (1)- 
			  Thai (1)- 
			  Turkish 5 
			  Turkmenistanian (1)- 
			  Ugandan (1)- 
			  Ukrainian 4 
			  Unknown 371 
			  Vietnamese 3 
			  Yugoslavian (1)- 
			  Zimbabwean 8 
			 22-39 Total  1,207 
			
			  40-59 Albanian (1)- 
			  Algerian (1)- 
			  Australian (1)- 
			  Belgian (1)- 
			  British 452 
			  Bulgarian (1)- 
			  Chinese 3 
			  Congolese (1)- 
			  Czech (1)- 
			  Dutch (1)- 
			  Ecuadorian (1)- 
			  Egyptian (1)- 
			  Ethiopian (1)- 
			  Filipino (1)- 
			  French 3 
			  Gambian (1)- 
			  German (1)- 
			  Hungarian (1)- 
			  Indian 8 
			  Indonesian (1)- 
			  Irish 9 
			  Italian 4 
			  Jamaican (1)- 
			  Korean (1)- 
			  Latvian 3 
			  Lithuanian (1)- 
			  Maltese (1)- 
			  Nigerian (1)- 
			  Pakistani 8 
			  Polish 15 
			  Romanian (1)- 
			  Serbian (1)- 
			  Somalian 7 
			  South African 3 
			  Sri Lankan (1)- 
			  Tobagan (1)- 
			  Tunisian (1)- 
			  Turkish (1)- 
			  Ugandan 3 
			  Unknown 325 
			  Vietnamese (1)- 
			  Zairian (1)- 
			 40-59 Total  880 
			
			  60-79 Afghanistan (1)- 
			  Australian (1)- 
			  Barbadian (1)- 
			  British 112 
			  Chilean (1)- 
			  German (1)- 
			  Ghanian (1)- 
			  Indian (1)- 
			  Irish 7 
			  Italian 3 
			  Nigerian (1)- 
			  Pakistani (1)- 
			  Polish (1)- 
			  Portuguese (1)- 
			  Romanian (1)- 
			  Somalian (1)- 
			  Sri Lankan (1)- 
			  Unknown 88 
			 60-79 Total  228 
			
			  80+ British 25 
			  Cypriot (1)- 
			  Indian (1)- 
			  Italian (1)- 
			  Jamaican (1)- 
			  Korean (1)- 
			  Lithuanian (1)- 
			  Nigerian (1)- 
			  Unknown 17 
			 80+ Total  50 
			
			  18-80+ Total  2,855 
			 (1) Less than 3.  Note: Exact figures in individual cells hidden to protect statistical confidentiality. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2b: Adults recorded as missing by Missing Persons B , 1 April 2008 to 31 October 2009 
			  Number 
			   Age group 
			  ACPO Region  18-21  t otal  22-39 t otal  40-59 t otal  60-79 t otal  80+ t otal  18-80+  t otal 
			 East Midlands 48 131 73 16 5 273 
			 Eastern 33 99 75 16 4 227 
			 Guernsey/IOM(3)/Jersey (1)- (1)- (1)- (1)- (1)- 3 
			 London 50 172 65 25 7 319 
			 North East 17 62 73 13 5 170 
			 North West 75 184 106 30 4 399 
			 Scotland 10 46 32 10 6 104 
			 South East 131 165 167 43 7 513 
			 South West 15 62 55 20 5 157 
			 Wales (1)- 23 22 7 (2)- 57 
			 West Midlands 44 124 93 25 2 288 
			 International 6 8 9 (2)- (1)- 26 
			 Unknown 58 131 107 20 3 319 
			 Total 490 1,207 880 228 50 2,855 
			 (1) 5 or less. (2) Less than 3. (3) Isle of Man.  Note: Exact figures in individual cells hidden to protect statistical confidentiality age group is based on age as at 23 November 2009.

Police: Bedfordshire

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many attacks on police officers there have been in Mid Bedfordshire constituency in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: Data on assaults are not collected centrally by constituency. Data for the numbers of assaults on police officers in Bedfordshire for 2004-05 to 2008-09 are given in the following table.
	
		
			  Assaults on police officers in Bedfordshire, 2004-05 to 2008-09( 1,2,3,4) 
			   Assaults (headcount) 
			 2008-09 94 
			 2007-08 106 
			 2006-07 124 
			 2005-06 101 
			 2004-05(4) 102 
			 (1) Financial year runs 1 April to 31 March inclusive. (2) Data are provisional. (3) Data are collected by the Home Office on behalf of HMIC. From 2005-06, assaults data were no longer published in the HMIC Annual Report. Current arrangements for the publication of these data are that they will be released as supplementary datasets to the HMIC Annual Report by Home Office Statistics. (4) Data for 2004-05 have been revised since being published in the HMIC Annual Report, when it was stated that the figures were being reviewed in the light of possible changes in recording practice. Source data were previously populated from the crime recording system, but this was changed to populate source data from the self-reported HR system.

Radicalism

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  whether his Department plans to create a legal definition of the term domestic extremism for use by the police;
	(2)  whether his Department plans to issue guidance to police forces on the definition and use of the term domestic extremism.

David Hanson: The Government have no plans to create a legal definition of domestic extremism. The website of the National Extremism Tactical Co-ordination Unit already sets out guidance on the definition and use of domestic extremism, which is a term used to describe criminal acts in furtherance of a campaign.
	The Association of Chief Police Officers is currently updating public order guidance and training, and the Government will work with ACPO to ensure that revised guidance and training is clear on the use of the term domestic extremism.

Roads: Accidents

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how much  (a) time and  (b) money was spent by police forces in (i) England and (ii) Wales in dealing with accidents involving drivers who qualified less than a year prior to the accident in the last 12 month period for which figures are available;
	(2)  how much  (a) time and  (b) money was spent by police forces in (i) England and (ii) Wales in dealing with accidents involving drivers under 20 years old in the last 12 month period for which figures are available.

David Hanson: The information requested is not held centrally.

Serious Organised Crime Agency

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many investigations have been referred to the Serious Organised Crime Agency by  (a) regional police forces,  (b) officials of his Department,  (c) UK Border Agency officials and  (d) HM Revenue and Customs officials in (i) 2009 and (ii) each of the last three years.

Alan Campbell: The majority of SOCA's operational activity falls within the scope of the United Kingdom Organised Crime Control Strategy, and is initiated, planned and executed in collaboration with one or more partner agencies, including other law enforcement agencies from the UK and overseas. In addition to this work within the Control Strategy, SOCA provides a range of support activities for partners, principally UK law enforcement agencies. There is, therefore, no single referral and adoption system.
	SOCA's operational contribution to the UK Control Strategy in the three financial years since it was formed has been:
	
		
			   Operations and projects 
			 2006-07 404 
			 2007-08 459 
			 2008-09 556 
		
	
	This work, covering the range of threats outlined in the United Kingdom Threat Assessment of Organised Crime, is normally multi-faceted and involves concurrent activity by SOCA and partners, across the UK and internationally, aimed at a range of outcomes, including but not confined to, criminal justice disposals.
	Under arrangements agreed between HM Revenue and Customs and the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), HM Revenue and Customs notify SOCA of seizures made at ports that meet specific criteria. SOCA undertakes systematic checks on every notification, but investigates only where the size of the seizure, significance of the criminals involved and operational opportunities presented are assessed as appropriate for further effective action, in line with the priorities of the UK Organised Crime Control Strategy. The number of notifications over the last three years has been:
	
		
			  As at 31 August each year  Number 
			 2009 105 
			 2008 99 
			 2007 74

Serious Organised Crime Agency

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps the Serious Organised Crime Agency is taking to disrupt the smuggling of guns into the UK.

Alan Campbell: SOCA's operational activity focusing on the threat from firearms falls under the UK Organised Crime Control Strategy, and in particular the firearms programme of activity. This multi-agency firearms programme, which is led by ACPO, aims to reduce the possession and use of firearms by organised criminals, and by street gangs involved in the drugs trade. This includes SOCA operational activity in collaboration with law enforcement partners in the UK and overseas targeting the importation to the UK (by fast parcels, internet purchases and conventional smuggling means) and distribution of illegal firearms and component parts.
	SOCA currently leads 11 operations, eight projects and 11 single strand inquiries under the firearms programme. SOCA also regularly shares intelligence reporting on firearms, including on smuggling methodologies, with those in law enforcement and Government in a position to use the information to take action against criminal problems.

Sexual Assault Referral Centres

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many new Sexual Assault Referral Centres he expects to be opened in the period to April 2011.

Alan Campbell: The recently published strategy entitled Together We Can End Violence Against Women and Girls sets out the Government's commitment to have a SARC operational in every police force area by April 2011.

Sexual Assault Referral Centres

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what qualitative and quantitative data on people referred to sexual assault referral centres such centres are required to report to his Department.

Alan Campbell: SARCs are not required to report data to the Home Office on victims referred to SARCs. However, as set out in the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy published on 25 November, accurate and comparable data are essential to enable local areas to plan, implement and monitor services for victims of Violence Against Women and Girls. As such, SARCs should seek to share appropriate data with local partners as necessary to inform assessments of service need. The recently published A Resource for Developing Sexual Assault Referral Centres sets out appropriate data collection procedures for SARCs.

Terrorism

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department by what mechanisms the  (a) National Public Order Intelligence Unit,  (b) National Extremism Tactical Co-ordination Unit and  (c) National Domestic Extremism Team are accountable; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The National Public Order Intelligence Unit, the National Extremism Tactical Co-ordination Unit and the National Domestic Extremism Team report to the ACPO National Coordinator for Domestic Extremism, who is in turn accountable to the ACPO Committee for Terrorism and Allied Matters. The accounts of ACPO, as a registered company, are subject to audit.
	Following the publication on 25 November 2009 of the report by Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Adapting to Protest, the Government will act on the report's recommendations to review the governance and accountability structures of the national domestic extremism units to ensure they are sufficiently transparent and clear.

Victim Support Schemes

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what support his Department makes available to post-pubertal adolescent victims reporting sexual violence within a week of an alleged assault.

Alan Campbell: Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs) are one-stop locations where victims of recent sexual assault can receive medical care and counselling quickly and empathetically, and which allow for the collection of forensic evidence for potential prosecutions. Young people can access the full range of examination and support services from the majority of SARCs which offer specific services for young people. This includes some SARCs who have a dedicated young persons Independent Sexual Violence Adviser (ISVA). We are encouraging all SARCs to ensure that they are able to offer the full range of quality services to children and young people. The Home Office has provided capital and resource funding to expand the number and quality of SARCs since 2003-04.
	The Home Office has also provided just over 3 million to support ISVAs since they were piloted in 2006. ISVAs provide independent support and advocacy to victims of sexual violence and abuse throughout and beyond the criminal justice process. There are a number of ISVAs who work specifically with children and young people who have experienced sexual violence.

Victim Support Schemes: Finance

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what funding his Department  (a) made available in 2009-10 and  (b) plans to make available in 2010-11 to support (i) independent sexual violence advisers and (ii) independent domestic violence advisers; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Campbell: The Home Office made 860,000 available to support the expansion of ISVAs in 2009-10 and expects to do so in 2010-11. The Home Office also allocated 3.5 million in 2009-10 and expects to do so in 2010-11 to the regional Government offices to contribute to funding of both IDVAs and multi agency risk assessment conferences.

Victim Support Schemes: Finance

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what funding his Department expects to provide to support the operation of existing sexual assault referral centres in 2010-11.

Alan Campbell: The recently published strategy entitled Together We Can End Violence Against Women and Girls sets out the Government's commitment to double central investment in Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs) in 2010-11 making 3.2 million of funding available. We expect the majority of this funding to be used to support existing SARCs.

Victim Support Schemes: Finance

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding his Department  (a) has provided in the last 12 months and  (b) intends to provide in the next 12 months for the establishment and operation of the Sexual Violence National Support Team.

Alan Campbell: The Department of Health provided 0.7 million to fund the National Support Team on Response to Sexual Violence in 2009-10 and has committed a further 0.7 million for 2010-11.

Charity Commission

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  how much was paid in  (a) expenses,  (b) monies to compensate for tax liability and  (c) other remuneration paid to each commissioner of the Charity Commission in the last year for which information is available;
	(2)  what declarations of political activity have been made by each  (a) commissioner and  (b) executive director of the Charity Commission.

Angela Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19 October 2009,  Official Report, columns 1290-92W.

Charity Commission: Public Relations

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what payments the Charity Commission has made to Mandate Communications/AS Biss in the last 12 months; at what cost; for what purposes; and if she will place in the Library a copy of each of the contracts under which such payments have been made.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Charity Commission. I have asked the Commission to reply.
	 Letter from Andrew Hind, dated 26 November 2009:
	As the Chief Executive of the Charity Commission, I have been asked to respond to your written Parliamentary Question (302211) on what payments the Charity Commission has made to Mandate Communications/AS Biss in the last 12 months; at what cost; for what purpose; and whether we can place in the Library a copy of the contracts under which such payments have been made.
	We made no payments to Mandate between 24 November 2008 and 24 November 2009. However, in September 2008 we made a payment of 4,406.25 to them for the purpose of providing training. It is not appropriate to place a copy of the relevant contract in the Library of the House, for reasons of commercial confidentiality.
	I hope this is helpful.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  what the cost was of maintaining her Department's website in the 2008-09 financial year; and what the forecast cost is of maintaining websites within the Cabinet Office's responsibility in the 2009-10 financial year;
	(2)  what the cost was of maintaining  (a) the Cabinet Office and  (b) the No. 10 website in the 2008-09 financial year; and what the forecast cost is of maintaining that website in the 2009-10 financial year.

Tessa Jowell: It is not possible to provide a single figure for the running costs of the Cabinet Office website as they are contained within the overall costs of the Cabinet Office e-media team, which is also responsible for all forms of digital communication. It should be noted that Cabinet Office do not supply forecast figures, only audited figures.
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by the Prime Minister on 26 November 2008,  Official Report, column 1482W, which explained that as a result of accounting changes it is not possible to provide a single comparable figure for the running costs of the No. 10 website.

Driving

Stephen Ladyman: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what mechanisms are in place to ensure that staff who drive  (a) a vehicle for which (i) her Department and (ii) its executive agency is responsible have valid driving licences and  (b) their own vehicles in the course of their official duties for (A) her Department and (B) its executive agency have valid driving licences and insurance; what guidance is issued to those staff in respect of road safety while carrying out official duties; what steps are taken to monitor compliance with that guidance; what requirements there are on such staff to report to their line managers accidents in which they are involved while driving in the course of their official duties; and whether such reports are investigated.

Angela Smith: The Cabinet Office owns one minibus that is used by the Emergency Planning College. The licenses of staff are visually inspected by the trainer prior to attending the driving training course specific to this vehicle.
	Staff are trusted to give accurate information. Equally staff are trusted to notify the Department should their circumstances change.
	Cabinet Office does not check employees driving licenses prior to the use of private vehicles for official journeys. Cabinet Office guidance states that if a member of staff uses their own vehicle for official travel they are responsible for ensuring the following insurance cover obtained at their own expense:
	Business cover insurance in addition to fully comprehensive insurance for the vehicle.
	Either fully comprehensive insurance and business cover or third party insurance and business cover for any motor cycle.
	Cabinet Office has limited requirement for car hire. Provision of car hire services are contracted via our supplier Arval, which is responsible for checking that drivers are suitably qualified, which is further endorsed by in-house authorisation documents that state drivers must be qualified.
	The Cabinet Office does not specifically advise staff on road safety if not using the Cabinet Office vehicle (minibus for which specific training is given).
	The Cabinet Office would be informed by both the contractor and the person(s) involved should an accident occur.
	There is no specific guidance should an accident occur in a member of staff's own vehicle.

Employment

James Clappison: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many  (a) UK nationals,  (b) UK born people,  (c) non-UK EU nationals and  (d) non-EU nationals of working age were in employment in the (i) public and (ii) private sector in each of the last eight quarters for which figures are available; what proportion of the number of people employed in each sector the figures in each such category represent; and what the equivalent figures were in 1987.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
	 Letter from Jil Matheson, dated November 2009:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many  (a) UK nationals,  (b) UK-born people,  (c) non-UK EU nationals and  (d) non-KU nationals of working age were in employment in the (i) public and (ii) private sector in each of the last eight quarters for which figures are available; what proportion of the number of people employed in each sector the figures in each such category represent; and what the equivalent figures were in 1987. (300823)
	The available information is shown in the attached tables. The estimates are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). Estimates for 1987 are not available. The earliest available estimates on a comparable basis are for 1995 and these have therefore been included.
	In the LFS the distinction between public and private sector is based on respondents' views about the organisation for which they work. The public sector estimates provided do not correspond to official Public Sector Employment estimates. Those are derived directly from employers and are based on National Accounts definitions, but do not include a nationality breakdown.
	As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. This is assessed in a footnote to the table.
	The figures in the table are derived from the LFS microdata which are weighted using the official population estimates published in autumn 2007. They are not entirely consistent with the figures published in the monthly Labour Market Statistical Bulletin, which are weighted using more up-to-date population estimates.
	
		
			  Part 1: Employment levels for people of working age( 1)  in employment by public and private sector and by nationality and country of birth Three months ending September 1995 and three months ending March, June, September and December, 2007 to 2009 United Kingdom, not seasonally adjusted 
			   Thousand 
			   Public sector( 2,3)  Private sector( 2,4)  Total employment( 4,5) 
			   UK nationals  UK born  Non-UK EU nationals( 6)  Non-EU nationals( 6)  UK nationals  UK born  Non-UK EU nationals( 6)  Non-EU nationals( 6)  UK nationals  UK born  Non-UK EU nationals( 6)  Non-EU nationals( 6) 
			 1995 Q3 5,729 5,493 86 116 18,451 17,783 292 345 24,357 23,444 381 467 
			 2007 Q4 6,305 5,979 148 218 19,618 18,617 859 936 26,050 24,718 1,010 1,163 
			 2008 Q1 6,299 5,970 136 249 19,447 18,457 928 928 25,870 24,547 1,068 1,186 
			 2008 Q2 6,349 6,025 138 236 19,404 18,388 917 955 25,882 24,532 1,065 1,201 
			 2008 Q3 6,293 5,973 134 238 19,513 18,493 906 988 25,928 24,580 1,045 1,234 
			 2008 Q4 6,387 6,052 124 266 19,245 18,206 923 1,015 25,749 24,372 1,052 1,290 
			 2009 Q1 6,443 6,109 113 268 18,891 17,842 979 940 25,454 24,067 1,097 1,215 
			 2009Q2 5,444 6,124 125 263 18,658 17,639 949 917 25,227 23,881 1,078 1,190 
			 2009 Q3(7) *6,514 *6,192 ***130 **247 *18,775 *17,771 *922 *912 *25,416 *24,082 *1,060 1,168 
		
	
	
		
			  Part 2: Working age employment in public and private sector by nationality and country of birth, as a proportion of the total working age employment in each sector. Three months ending September 1395 and three months ending March, June, September and December, 2007 to 2003 United Kingdom, not seasonally adjusted 
			  Percentage 
			   Public sector( 2,3)  Private sector( 2,4)  Total employment( 4,5) 
			   UK nationals  UK born  Non-UK EU nationals( 6)  Non-EU nationals( 6)  UK nationals  UK born  Non-UK EU nationals( 6)  Non-EU nationals( 6)  UK nationals  UK born  Non-UK EU nationals( 6)  Non-EU nationals( 6) 
			 1995 Q3 97 93 1 2 97 93 2 2 97 93 2 2 
			 2007 Q4 95 90 2 3 92 87 4 4 92 88 4 4 
			 2008 Q1 94 88 2 4 91 87 4 4 92 87 4 4 
			 2008 Q2 94 90 2 4 91 86 4 5 92 87 4 4 
			 2008 Q3 94 90 2 4 91 86 4 5 92 87 4 4 
			 2008 Q4 94 89 2 4 91 86 4 5 92 87 4 5 
			 2009 Q1 94 90 2 4 91 86 5 5 92 87 4 4 
			 2009 Q2 94 90 2 4 91 86 5 5 92 87 4 4 
			 2009 Q3 95 90 2 4 91 86 5 4 92 87 4 4 
			 (1) Men aged 16-64 and woman aged 16-19. (2) It should be noted that public and private sector estimates - are based on survey respondents' views about the organisation for which they work. - do not correspond to the national Accounts definition used for public Sector Employment estimates. (3) Includes nationalised industry or state corporation, central government, civil service, local government or council (incl. police, fire services and local authority controlled schools or colleges), university or other grant funded educational establishments, health authority or NHS trust and armed forces (4) Includes self employed and unpaid family workers (5) Includes those whose type of employer was not known (6) Non-UK EU comprises Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden only in 1995 Q3. Meaningful comparisons between 1995 Q3 and 2009 Q3 are not possible due to the changes in the composition of the EU. (7) Coefficients of Variation have been calculated for the latest period of the quality of the estimates, as described below.  Guide to Quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV-for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5 per cent. we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220  Key Statistical Robustness * Estimates are considered precise ** Estimates are considered reasonably precise *** Estimates are considered acceptable **** Estimates are considered too unreliable for practical purposes  Source: Annual Population Survey and Annual Labour Force Survey

Futurebuilders England: Public Relations

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what payments Futurebuilders has made to APCO public affairs in the last 12 months; for what purposes; and if she will place in the Library a copy of each of the contracts under which such payments have been made.

Angela Smith: Futurebuilders England Ltd (a subsidiary of the Social Investment Business) is an independent company, which delivers the Futurebuilders Programme under contract to the Cabinet Office. Details of individual contracts between Futurebuilders England and their suppliers are a matter between Futurebuilders England and the commercial supplier involved.

Government Communications

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many staff in No. 10 Downing Street are members of the Government Communication Network.

Tessa Jowell: The Government Communications Network (GCN) is not a membership organisation. It is essentially an online network for professional support and development.
	Any civil servant who works in a communication role can, if they so wish, register on-line as an individual to gain access to GCN and the resources it provides through its website.
	GCN registration figures do not distinguish between Cabinet Office and No 10. Downing street.

Government Communications

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people are members of the Government Communication Network.

Angela Smith: The Government Communications Network is not a membership organisation. It is primarily a virtual, online network.
	Any civil servant who works in a communication role can register on-line as an individual to gain access to GCN and the resources it provides through its website.

Third Sector: Finance

Tom Levitt: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether her decision to divert funding from the Campaigning Research Programme to the Hardship Fund was made in accordance with Compact principles.

Angela Smith: Although this difficult decision to divert funding away from the Campaigning Research Programme to the Hardship Fund is not in line with Compact principles, the Government remains fully committed to championing the Compact.
	Due to the feedback received from the third sector, the additional funding will provide grants to organisations suffering financial hardship as a result of the extraordinary pressures caused by the recession. This will mean that more third sector organisations will be able to deliver vital services to the most disadvantaged and vulnerable people in society at a time when they need help most.

Young People: Northern Ireland

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate has been made of the number of 18 to 30 year olds in each ward in Northern Ireland in the last year for which figures are available; and what percentage of the population they represented in each case.

Angela Smith: This matter is now the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Administration.

Education

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the  (a) costs and  (b) likelihoods for parents of multiple-birth children in placing their children in the same early years setting;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of levels of access for multiple-birth children to attend the same early years  (a) settings and  (b) sessions; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The Government recognise that most parents would prefer siblings, including multiple birth children, to be in the same child care setting. Local authorities have a duty to ensure there is sufficient provision in their area, but this does not necessarily ensure that the specific needs and preferences of families can always be met. The availability of places within individual settings will depend on their occupancy levels and other factors. The Government make significant funding available annually (a substantial part of the 4 billion per year currently spent on under-fives education and care) to ensure that all children aged three and four have access to 12.5 hours free early education a week, rising to 15 hours in 2010.
	For those working parents who pay for additional hours, provision is made through the child care element of working tax credit for parents of two or more children to receive a higher level of financial support than those with one child.

Education

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the level of access which multiple-birth families have to swimming pools and playgrounds; and if he will issue guidance to providers on the matter.

Gerry Sutcliffe: I have been asked to reply.
	Sport England has advised that they provide two design guidance documents on their website which set out best practice advice on access arrangement to swimming pools. These documents can be accessed here:
	http://www.sportengland.org/facilities_planning/design_guidance_notes.aspx?sortBy=alphapageNum=3
	The Swimming Pool Design document outlines the basic principles and concepts of good swimming pool design aimed at those involved in facility development. The Swimming Pools Checklist document is a checklist for reviewing swimming pool projects during development applicable to both new and refurbishment projects, cross referred to Swimming Pool Design Guidance Notes.
	While they do not specifically reference multiple birth families they do reference the principles of designing and managing facilities to maximise use of families in general.
	DCSF have advised, with regards to playgrounds, that they have made a substantial investment in providing all children and young people with safe and stimulating places to play. The Play Strategy, launched in December 2008, sets out Government's commitment to invest 235 million to deliver 3500 new or refurbished play areas, plus 30 staffed adventure playgrounds, by 2011.
	Local authorities are required to consult with children, young people, families (regardless of the number of children within them) and the wider community to ensure that their views are at the heart of the design and development of these play areas in their local neighbourhoods. These play areas should be fully inclusive and accessible for all children, including those with disabilities and should offer open access play opportunities, in which children and young people are generally free to independently come and go as they please, and be free of charge.

Holiday Play Schemes

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) out-of-school and  (b) holiday play schemes there were in (i) Lewes, (ii) East Sussex, (iii) the South East and (iv) England in each of the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: The table shows the number of out of school clubs in England, the south-east Government office region and East Sussex local authority in each of the last five years for which data was collected. The last year that Ofsted collected information on out of school clubs was 2008 as changes in legislation meant that new categories were introduced for the collection of child care data.
	Information on the number of holiday play schemes is not available as Ofsted do not collect this data. Information is not collected at parliamentary constituency level.
	
		
			  Number( 1)  of out of school clubs for children under eight years of age-position at 31 March each year 
			   England  South-east Government office region  East Sussex local authority 
			 2004 9,200 1,300 60 
			 2005 9,700 1,400 60 
			 2006 10,500 1,600 60 
			 2007 10,600 1,500 50 
			 2008 10,700 1,600 60 
			 (1) Figures over 100 have been rounded to the nearest 100 and figures under 100 have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: Ofsted

Pre-school Education: Finance

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much has been allocated to each children's services department in each local authority for implementation of the early years single funding formula in 2010-11.

Dawn Primarolo: The free entitlement to early education for every three and four-year-old is funded through the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), which has increased by on average 13.1 per cent. per pupil between 2008-09 and 2010-11. Funding has also been made available through the standards fund grant to support the flexible extension of the free entitlement, which local authorities can use to support the implementation of their local single funding formula if required (340 million for 2010-11). It is for local authorities to determine in consultation with their Schools Forum the distribution of the Schools Budget (including the DSG).

Specialised Diplomas: South Yorkshire

Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many students are enrolled on a 14 to 19 diploma course in each subject in  (a) Barnsley and  (b) South Yorkshire.

Iain Wright: The 14 to 19 Diploma was introduced in the academic year 2008/09. Data for this year was published via the DCSF website on 11 November 2009:
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/STA/t000888/index.shtml
	The number of learners who participated in a course of study towards a Diploma for all or part of the academic year 2008/09 in  (a) the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and  (b) the Metropolitan County of South Yorkshire, up to and including 31 August 2009, as identified by the number of diploma learners registered on the QCDA Diploma Aggregation Service (DAS) data is:
	
		
			   (a) Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley  (b) Metropolitan County of South Yorkshire 
			 Construction and the Built Environment 35 122 
			 Creative and Media 0 35 
			 Engineering 0 58 
			 Information Technology 0 44 
			 Society, Health and Development 28 28 
			 Total 63 287 
			  Source: Diploma Aggregation Service 
		
	
	Initial figures from local authorities on 2009/10 Diploma learners will have been returned and confirmed by the end of 2009.

Carbon Emissions: Housing

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what qualifications are required for a person to undertake home energy advice work related to the carbon emissions reduction target.

Joan Ruddock: Article 3 of the Electricity and Gas (Carbon Emissions Reduction) (Amendment) Order 2009 sets out the qualifications required. These are:
	(a) City and Guilds (6176) in Energy Awareness;
	(b) Level 3 of the National Vocational Qualification 6049-03 (Provide Energy Efficiency Services);
	(c) A qualification based on units one to five of the National Occupational Standards (NOS) for Home and Community Energy Advisers which qualification is awarded by a body which has been approved and quality assured by the Office of the Qualifications and Examinations Regulator; or,
	(d) A qualification that is recognised be a member state of the European Union, an EEA state or Turkey.

Nuclear Power Stations: Cumbria

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the risks of fluvial flooding to the three sites in Cumbria named in the National Nuclear Policy Statement as suitable for prospective new nuclear power plants.

David Kidney: The Government assessed whether it is reasonable to conclude, at a strategic level, that a nuclear power station within the nominated sites at Kirksanton, Braystones and Sellafield in Cumbria could be protected against flood risk including the potential effects of climate change, storm surge and tsunami, taking into account possible countermeasures and mitigations.
	This assessment included a consideration of fluvial flooding and the results of the assessment were published in the Nuclear National Policy Statement on 9 November 2009. This is available at:
	http://www.energynpsconsultation.decc.gov.uk/nuclear
	In assessing flood risk the Government have been advised in particular by the Environment Agency and the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate. Sites were assessed against the climate change allowances in Planning Policy Statement 25 (PPS25) and UK Climate Projections 2009 (UKCP09) findings.
	The Government are consulting on its preliminary conclusions until February 2010 and will continue to work with the Environment Agency (and others) to ensure that the Nuclear National Policy Statement reflects up-to-date assessment of the strategic flood risk to the site. Detailed flood risk assessments would be required by the Infrastructure Planning Commission at the point at which any application for development consent came forward.

Warm Front Scheme

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much money remains to be disbursed from the Warm Front scheme in 2009-10.

David Kidney: holding answer 30 November 2009
	 The funding allocated for 2009-10 is set at 369 million. At the end of November 2009, scheme spend will stand at 308 million, leaving 61 million to be disbursed over the remainder of the financial year.